The fifth chapter of Matthaei.*)

**) Interpretation.

When he saw the people, he went up on a mountain and sat down, and his disciples came to him. And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying etc.

(1) Then the evangelist makes a preface and pretentiousness, how Christ stood for the preaching which he was about to do: that he went up into a mountain, and sat down, and preached his sermon.

He opens his mouth, so that one can see that he is serious. For these are the 5) three things, as they say, that belong to a good preacher. First, that he appears. Second, that he opens his mouth and says something. Thirdly, that he may also stop.

5) "the" is missing in the Wittenberger.

*) Before this superscription, the Jena edition repeats the title of this writing and adds: "angefangen am 9. November des 30. Jahrs und durch den Druck erstlich ausgegangen Anno 1532".

**The text of the entire fifth chapter, which precedes it in the Wittenberg and Jena editions (but not in the original print), has been omitted here, because in each case the relevant verses of the text precede the interpretation.

2. the appearance is that he presents himself as a master or preacher who can and should do it, as called to it, and does not come from himself, but to whom it is due from duty and obedience, that he may say: I do not come trolled by my own authority and discretion, but must do it by virtue of my office.

3 This is said against those who have caused us so much trouble and torture up to now and will do so in the future, the scoundrels and pranksters, who now and then go astray in the countryside, poisoning people before the priest and those in office or in authority know about it, and so they throw down one house after another until they poison a whole city, and then a whole country from the city. In order to prevent such sneaks and pranksters, one should not allow anyone to preach who has not been commanded to do so and who is not in office. Also, no one should dare to preach, even if he is already a preacher, when he hears a false preacher in a papist or other church, who tempts people to preach against him. Also, do not sneak into the houses from time to time and preach special sermons, but stay at home and wait for his office or preaching chair, or remain silent, if he does not want to or cannot publicly step into the pulpit.

4 For God does not want anyone to run astray with His word, as if someone were driven by the Holy Spirit and had to preach, and thus seek out places and corners, houses or preaching booths, where he has no ministry. For even St. Paul himself did not want to preach in the places where the other apostles had preached before, even though he was called to be an apostle by God [Rom. 15, 20. 2 Cor. 10, 15. 16]. Therefore it says here that Christ freely goes up the mountain publicly when he begins his preaching ministry, and soon after [v. 14] he says to his 1) disciples, "You are the light of the world." Item 2) [v. 15.], "Do not light a candle and put it under a bushel, but set it on a lampstand to give light to all who are in the house." For the ministry of preaching and God's word should therefore shine like the sun, not creep in the darkness and be meek, as one would think of the

1) Erlanger: den.

2) Erlanger: and.

3) But act freely in the daytime, and let him be seen under the eyes, so that both preacher and hearer may be sure that it is rightly taught, and that the office is commanded, that they may have it no secret. 4) Do thou likewise: when thou art in the ministry, and hast orders to preach, stand forth freely in public, and spare no man, that thou mayest boast with Christ, "I have taught freely in public before the world, and have spoken nothing in secret" etc. Joh. 18, 20.

005 But sayest thou, How then shall no man teach anything, except it be publicly? Or, shall not a householder teach his servants in his house, or keep with him a disciple or other to read unto them? Answer: Yes, it is well done, and a proper room and place for it. For every householder is obliged to teach his children and servants, or to have them taught. For he is in his house as a priest or bishop over his household, and he is commanded to see what they learn and to answer for them. But this does not apply if you want to do this outside your house, and intrude from yourself into other houses or to neighbors. Neither shalt thou suffer that any creeper come unto thee, and make a special preaching in thy house, which he is not commanded to do. But if anyone comes into a house or town, let him bring a certificate that he is known, or a seal and letter showing that he has orders. For it is not necessary to believe all the pranksters who boast of the Holy Spirit, and turn back and forth into the houses with it. In short, it is said: The gospel or preaching ministry is not to be heard in the corner, but high emmpor on the mountain, and free publicly in the light. This is one thing that Matthew wants to indicate here.

The other thing is that he opens his mouth. This also belongs to a preacher, as said [§ 1], that he does not shut his mouth, and does not only conduct the ministry publicly, that everyone must be silent, and let him appear as the one who has divine right and command.

3) In the old editions: "Kue". Erlanger: "cows".

4) "dürfe" in all German editions. In Latin: ne dissimulare audeant. Accordingly, "dürfen" will have to be read.

354 Erl. 43, g-n. Interpretation of the 5th, 6th and 7th chap. Matthaei. W. VII. SK7-M. 355

but also to open his mouth freshly and confidently, that is, to preach the truth and what he is commanded to preach; not to be silent nor to mumble, but to confess and speak out boldly and fearlessly, no one regarded or spared, to whomever or whatever it may concern.

7. For this hinders a preacher very much if he wants to look around and worry about what people like to hear or not, or what might bring him disfavor, harm or danger; But as he stands high on the mountain, in a public place, and looks around him freely, so he should also speak freely, and spare no one, even though he sees many different people and heads, and not mince words, neither gracious nor angry lords and nobles, neither money, wealth, honor, power, nor shame, poverty, harm, and think no further than that he speaks what his office demands, which is why he stands there.

8. for Christ did not establish and appoint the ministry of preaching to serve the purpose of acquiring money, goods, favor, honor, friendship, or to seek his own advantage with it, but rather to freely expose the truth to the public, to punish evil, and to say what belongs to the benefit, salvation, and blessedness of the soul. etc. For God's word is not here to teach how a maid or a servant should work in the house and earn his bread, or how a mayor should govern, or how a husbandman should plow or make hay. Summa, it does not yet show temporal goods, by which one receives this life, for reason has taught all this before to everyone, but it wants to teach how we should come to that life, and means you need this life, and feed the belly here, as long as it lasts, but that you know where you should stay and live, when such must cease.

(9) Now if it is a matter of preaching another life, which we should seek after, and for this reason we should not regard it as if we wanted to remain here forever, then there is strife and contention, so that the world does not want to suffer it. Where a preacher prefers his belly and life in time, he does not do it; he stands and washes in the pulpit, but he does not preach the truth, he never opens his mouth; where it is not the truth, he never opens his mouth.

wants to go badly, he stops and does not bite the fox. Behold, therefore Matthew hath written the preaching before, that Christ, as a right preacher, goeth up into the mountain, and openeth his mouth fresh, and teacheth the truth, and punisheth both false doctrine and life, as we shall hear.

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

(10) This is a fine, sweet, friendly beginning of his teaching and preaching. For he does not proceed, like Moses or a teacher of the law, with terrors, dread and terror, but in the most friendly manner with vain charms and curls and sweet promises. And indeed, if it were not thus composed, and the dear words and sermon, which the Lord Christ first preached, were not presented to us all, then every one would be driven and driven by the arrogance to run after it to Jerusalem, yes, to the end of the world, since one would only hear one word of it. Enough money would be found to build the road, and everyone would glory in hearing or reading the words and sermon spoken by the Lord Christ Himself. O what an excellent and blessed man he would be, to whom such a thing would happen! This would certainly be the case if we had not written about it, even though much else had been written by others; and everyone would say, "Yes, I hear what St. Paul and others taught his apostles, but I would much rather hear what he himself spoke and preached. But now that it is so common that everyone has it written in a book and can read it daily, no one considers it something special and delicious. Indeed, we grow weary of it, and we throw it to the winds, as if it had been spoken not by the high majesty from heaven, but by some cobbler. Therefore it happens to us, as a punishment for our ingratitude and contempt, that we have little enough of it, and never feel nor taste what treasure, power and authority there is in Christ's words. But whoever has the grace to regard it as the word of God and not the word of man will esteem it higher and more precious, and will never tire or grow weary of it.

(11) But how kind and sweet this sermon is to the Christians who are his disciples, so vexatious and grievous is it to the Jews and their great saints. For soon in the beginning he gives them a hard blow with these words, rejects and condemns their doctrine, and immediately preaches the contradiction; yes, he cries woe over their life and doctrine, as Lucas Cap. 6, 24. ff. indicates. For this was the sum of their teaching: if a man were well here on earth, he would be blessed and well off. And to this end they had directed everything: if they were pious, and served God, that God should give them enough on earth, and not let anything fail; as David Psalm 144:13, 14 says of them: This is their doctrine: that every nook and cranny should be full of provisions, and the fields full of sheep, which all at once are full and bear much, and the cattle work much, 1) and no harm, nor loss, nor accident, nor plague should befall them. They are called blessed people etc.

(12) Against this Christ opens his mouth, and says that there is something else to it, except that there is enough here on earth. As if to say, "Dear disciples, when you preach to the people, you will find that they all teach and believe this: whoever is rich and mighty etc. is blessed. And again: whoever is poor and miserable, let him be rejected and condemned before God. For the Jews were strong in the belief that if a man were well, that would be a sign that he had a gracious God, and again; that made them have much and great promise from God of temporal, bodily goods, which He would give to the pious. They relied on this, thinking that if they had such things, they would be well off with Him. The book of Job is also based on this. For his friends quarrelled and argued against him, insisting that he had done something great against God and that he knew that he would be punished in this way; therefore he should confess it, convert and become pious, and God would remove the punishment from him.

1) Jenaer: "ererbeite". Wittenberger: erbeite; probably a printing error.

(13) Therefore a necessary sermon was preached at the beginning, that he might destroy such delusion and tear it out of the hearts, as the greatest hindrance to faith, which strengthens the right idol Mammon in the heart. For from such teaching nothing else could follow, but that people would become stingy, and everyone would only seek how he could have enough and good days without lack and hardship. And everyone had to think: If he who is well off and has enough good things is blessed, then I must see to it that I do not have the least.

14 This is still the belief of all the world today, especially of the Turks, who rely and strengthen themselves most on it, and therefore conclude that it would not be possible for them to have so much happiness and victory if they were not God's people, and if he were gracious to them above all others. So also with us the whole papacy believes, and the foundation of their teaching and life is based on the fact that they only have enough, and have thus brought all the world's goods to themselves; as one can see before one's eyes. Summa, this is the greatest and widest faith or religion on earth, on which all men remain according to flesh and blood, and can regard no other as blessedness.

(15) Therefore he preaches another new sermon to the Christians, that if they are in trouble, if they are poor, and if they have to forgive themselves riches, power, honor and good days, they will still be blessed, and will have not a temporal but another eternal reward, that they may have enough in the kingdom of heaven.

16. But sayest thou, How then must all Christians be poor, and none have money, goods, honor, power etc.? Or, how shall the rich, as princes, lords, kings, do? Must they forsake all their goods, honor, etc., or buy the kingdom of heaven from the poor, as some have taught? Answer: No; it is not to buy from the poor, but to be poor oneself, and to be found among such poor who will have the kingdom of heaven. For it is clearly and plainly written, "Blessed are the poor. And yet the little word "spiritually poor" is included, so that it is not meant that someone is poor in body and has no money or goods.

358 Erl. 43', it-16. interpretation of the 5. 6. and 7. chap. Matthaei. W. VII, S4S-S4S. . 359

For having external money, goods, land and people is not wrong in itself, but God's gift and order. So no one is blessed who is a beggar and has nothing of his own everywhere, but it is called "being spiritually poor". For I have said above [§ 8.] in the beginning that Christ here does not speak of worldly rule and order at all, but wants to speak only of the spiritual, how one is to live before God apart from and above the external.

(17) To the temporal government belongs that one has money, property, honor, power, land and people, and cannot exist without these. Therefore a lord or prince should not and cannot be poor, for he must have all kinds of such goods for his office and status. Therefore it is not the opinion that one must be so poor that he has nothing of his own. For the world cannot exist in such a way that we should all be beggars and have nothing. For no householder could feed his household and servants if he himself had nothing. In sum, it is not good to be poor in body. For one finds many a beggar, who takes bread at the door, as proud and wicked as no rich man, and many a shabby peasant, with whom less is to be done than with no lord and prince.

(18) Therefore be poor in body and outward appearance, or be rich, as it is appointed unto thee; God doth not inquire of thee; and know that every man must be poor before God, that is, spiritually and in heart; that is, that he put not his trust, comfort, and defiance in temporal goods, nor put his heart therein, and let mammon be his idol. David was an excellent king, and must indeed have had his purse and chest full of money, the floors full of grain, the land full of all kinds of goods and provisions; nor must he have been a poor beggar spiritually, as he sings of himself [Psalm 39:13] I am poor, and a sojourner in the land, as were all my fathers. Behold, the king that sitteth in such goods, a lord over land and people, may not call himself otherwise than a sojourner or pilgrim, as he that walketh in the street, having nothing to abide in. That is, a heart that does not bind itself to goods and riches; but, though it have, yet is it like unto it, as having nothing, as

St. 1) Paul of the Christians boasts 2 Cor. 6, 10: "As the poor, yet making much rich; as having nothing in themselves, yet having everything" etc.

(19) All this is said, that because we live here, we have no need of all temporal goods and bodily necessities, except as a sojourner in a strange place, where he lies for the night and departs in the morning, needing no more than food and lodging for his necessities; he must not say, This is mine, here will I stay; nor sit down in the manor, as if it were his right, lest he should soon hear the host say to him, Dear man, knowest thou that thou art a sojourner here? Go your way, where you belong. So also here; that you have temporal goods, God has given you for this life, and grants you well that you use them and fill the maggot sack with them, which you wear on your neck, but do not hang your heart on it and cling to it, as if you wanted to live forever, but go on and on, and think about another, higher and better treasure, which is your own and shall remain forever.

20. Let this be spoken roughly for the common man, that one learns to understand according to Scripture what is meant by "spiritually poor" or poor before God, not to reckon outwardly according to money and goods, or according to lack or abundance, since one sees (as said) that the poorest, most miserable beggars are the worst, most desperate peelers, and may commit all wickedness and vice, which fine, honest people, rich citizens or lords and princes do not do; Again, also many holy people, who have had money and goods, honor, land and people enough, and yet have been poor with so many goods; but it must be reckoned according to the heart, which does not let it be hard-pressed whether it has something or nothing, much or little, and what it has for goods, always puts it down as if one did not have it, and must come and lose all hours for it, and always keeps the heart in the kingdom of heaven.

21 Again, he is called "rich" according to the Scriptures, who, though he has neither money nor goods, yet creeps and scrapes after them, so that he can never have enough. These are the

1) "St." is missing in the Erlanger.

right, whom the gospel calls rich wives, who have very little in the way of great goods, and are never satisfied with what God has given them. For it looks into the heart, which is full of money and goods, and judges according to it, even though there is nothing in the bag and box 1). Again, it judges the poor also by the heart, whether he has full box, Hans and yard. This is the way Christian faith goes through, looking neither at poverty nor wealth, but at how the heart stands. If there is miserliness in it, it is called spiritually rich; and again, spiritually poor, who is not attached to it, and can leave it out of the heart, as Christ says elsewhere [Matth. 19, 29. Luc. 18, 29. 30.]: "Whoever leaves houses, fields, child, wife etc., shall have it again an hundredfold, and shall inherit life eternal"; so that he will tear the hearts from the goods, that they will not think it their treasure; and comfort his own, who must leave it, that they shall receive much more and better, even in this life, than they can leave.

(22) Not that one should run away from property, house, farm, wife and child and go astray in the country, complaining to other people, as the Anabaptist flock does, blaming us for not preaching the gospel rightly, because we keep house and farm and stay with wife and child. No, he does not want such foolish saints, but rather it says: "He who with his heart can leave house, farm, wife and child, even if he sits in them and stays with them, feeds himself with them and serves them out of love, as God has commanded, and yet puts them where necessity demands, so that he can leave them all the time for the sake of God. If you are so skillful, you have left everything; so that the heart may not be captive, but remain pure from avarice and clinging, comfort and confidence in all things. And a rich man may be called spiritually poor, and therefore must not throw away his goods; but if he should leave them for necessity, he leaves them in God's name; not because he likes to be without wife, child, house, and farm, but much rather keeps them as long as God gives them, and serves him with them, and yet is also willing, if he gives them to him as if they were his own.

who wants to take. So you see what it means to be spiritually poor in the sight of God, or to have nothing spiritually and to leave everything.

23) Now see also in 3) the promise which Christ adds, saying: "For such is the kingdom of heaven. This is a great, excellent, glorious promise, that we shall have a beautiful, glorious, great, eternal good in heaven for the fact that we like to be poor here and do not respect temporal goods. And since you let a little party go here (which you may need as long and as much as you can have), you shall obtain a crown on the other hand, that you may be a citizen and lord in heaven. This should move us, if we wanted to be Christians and believe that his words are true. But no one pays attention to who he is who says it, much less to what he says; they let it pass before their ears, so that no one cares any more about it, nor takes it to heart.

(24) With these words he shows that no one can understand this unless he is a true Christian. For both this piece and all the others that follow are genuine fruits of faith, which the Holy Spirit himself must create in the heart. Where faith does not exist, the kingdom of heaven will remain on the outside, nor will spiritual poverty and gentleness etc. follow, but will remain a mere struggling and bickering, quarreling and rumbling about temporal goods. Therefore it is lost in such worldly hearts that they never learn nor experience what spiritual poverty is, nor believe nor respect what he says and promises about the kingdom of heaven.

(25) Though he ordains and directs it for the service of them, that whosoever will not be spiritually poor in the name of God for the kingdom of heaven's sake, he must be poor in the name of the devil, and have no thanks. For God has so hanged the miser in their belly that they can never be full nor glad of their ambitious goods. For Squire Avarice is such a merry guest, who lets no one rest; seeks, drives, and hunts without ceasing, so that he does not have to enjoy an hour of the dear good. Just as the preacher Solomon wonders and says [Cap. 6, 2.]

1) Erlanger: Cash registers.

2) Erlanger: from love.

3) "an" is missing in the Wittenberger.

Isn't it a shameful plague that God gives a man enough money and property, land and people, and yet he is not able to use it so much? He must always fear, worry and tremble, 1) how he will keep it and increase it, so that it will not perish nor become less, and is so completely imprisoned that he may not happily touch a penny. But if there were a heart that could be content and satisfied, it would have peace of mind and the kingdom of heaven in addition, since otherwise, with great good, or even with its stinginess, it would have to have purgatory here and hellish fire there, and, as they say, here with a cart and 2) there with a wheel; that is, to have sorrow and fear here, and heartache there.

26. See, this is how God always manages that his word must remain true, and that no one can be happy or have enough, except the Christians; and the others, although they have everything, have nothing the better, indeed, never have anything so good, and must remain poor beggars, to be reckoned by the heart; Without these being gladly poor, and clinging to an imperishable, eternal good, that is, to the kingdom of heaven, and are blessed children of God; but those are stingy after temporal good, and yet do not obtain what they want, must be eternally martyrs of the devil for it. And there is no difference between a beggar at the door and such a wretch, unless the former has nothing, and is refused a piece of bread; but the latter, the more he has, the less he is to be satisfied, though he may get all the money and goods of the world in one heap.

27 Therefore this preaching, as I said, does not serve the world, nor does it accomplish anything; for it remains that it wants to be sure of its thing, and does not believe, but sees it before the eyes and has it in the hand, and says: It is better to have a sparrow in the fist, than to gape at a crane in the air. That is why Christ lets them go, does not want to force anyone, nor to drag them by the hair, but gives his faithful advice to anyone who wants to give him advice, and holds out to us the most wonderful promises. If you want to

1) Wittenberger: live.

2) "and" is missing in the Erlanger.

you have peace and tranquility in your heart here, and what your heart desires there forever. If thou wilt not, go thither always, and rather have here and there all heartache and unhappiness. For we see and learn that all things depend on him who is content, and does not cling to temporal goods; as many a man is, if he has but a morsel of bread, God can fill his heart, that he may be glad and better satisfied than no prince nor king. Summa, he is a rich lord and emperor, must not have sorrow, trouble and heartache.

This is the first part of this sermon: Whoever wants to have enough here and there, let him think that he should not be so stingy and scrape, but accept and use what God gives, and tend to his work in faith, and he will have paradise here, and the kingdom of heaven altogether, as St. Paul also says 1 Tim. 4:8: "Godliness is profitable for all things, and has the promise not only of this life, but also of the life to come."

Blessed are those who suffer, for they shall be comforted.

29. As he began this sermon against the Jews' doctrine and faith (and not only against them, but against the whole world, where it is best, which always remains under the delusion that if it only has good, honor and its mammon here, then it is well, and only for the sake of it serves God), so he now continues, and also overturns that they considered the best, most blessed life on earth, who could bring it, that he would have good, gentle days, and should not suffer any adversity, of which the 73. Psalm, v. 5, says: "They are not in misfortune, like other people, and are not afflicted, like other people." For this is the highest thing that men desire, that they may have joy and pleasure, and be without evil. Now Christ turns the page, sets the antithesis straight, and calls blessed those who mourn and suffer. And so on, all these pieces are set and directed against the world's mind and thoughts, as it would like it to be. For it does not want hunger, sorrow, dishonor, disgrace, injustice, and wrongdoing.

3) "here" is missing in the Wittenberger.

The people who suffer violence, and who can be exalted, consider them to be blessed people.

(30) So he is saying here that there must be a different life than they seek and think, and that a Christian must judge himself by it, so that he mourns and suffers in the world. Whoever does not want to do this may have good days here and live according to his will, but afterwards he will mourn forever; as he says in Luc. 6:25: "Woe to you who laugh here and are of good cheer, for you will weep and mourn"; as it was with the rich man, Luc. 16:19.who lived every day gloriously and joyfully, and adorned himself in precious silks and purple, making himself believe that he was a great saint and well off before God for having given him so much good; and yet he left poor Lazarum lying daily at the door, full of grief, hunger and great misery. But what was the last judgment he heard when he lay in the fires of hell? "Remember that thou hast received good things in life, but Lazarus evil: therefore thou art tormented, and he is comforted. [Luc. 16:25.] Behold, this is this very text, "Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted." And again this much is said: Who 1) here seek and have nothing but joy and pleasure, they shall weep and wail forever.

(31) But askest thou, How then shall they do? shall they all be damned that laugh, and sing, and leap, and clothe themselves well, and eat, and drink? We read about kings and holy people who were also happy and lived well. And especially St. 2) Paul is a strange saint, who wants us to be joyful at all times, Phil. 4, 4, and says Rom. 12, 15: "Be joyful with the joyful"; and again: "Weep with those who weep." Behold, this is contrary to one another, to be always joyful, and yet to weep and mourn with others. Answer: Just as I have said that having riches is not a sin nor forbidden; so also to rejoice, to eat well, and to drink, is not a sin nor condemnable; neither is to have honor and a good name.

1) Erlanger: Who.

2) "St." is missing in the Erlanger.

and yet I shall be blessed if I do not have or cannot have these things, and suffer poverty, misery, shame and persecution instead. So there are both, and must be both, mourning and rejoicing, eating and suffering hunger; as St. 3) Paul Phil. 4, 11. 12. boasts of himself: "I have learned the art, that where I am, I am content. I can be low, I can ride high; I am skillful in all things, and in all, both, being full, and hungering; both, having left, and suffering want;" item 2 Cor. 6, 8.: "Through honor and dishonor, through evil rumors and good gossip; as those who die, and behold, we live; as those who mourn, but always rejoicing."

32. Therefore this is the opinion: Just as he who is spiritually poor is not called he who has no money nor anything of his own, but he who is not stingy about it, nor sets his comfort and defiance on it, as if it were his kingdom of heaven; so also it is called "bearing sorrow and mourning," not he who outwardly always hangs his head, sees sourly, and never laughs; but who does not set his comfort on having only good days here, and living in pleasure, as the world does, which looks no further than how it has vain joy and pleasure here, and feeds on it, and pays no attention nor cares how God or the people are doing. Thus many excellent, great people, kings and others who have been Christians, have had to mourn and suffer, even though they lived gloriously in the sight of the world, as David laments everywhere in the Psalter about his weeping and suffering.

33 And also now I could show 4) examples of great people, lords and princes, who have experienced and learned this piece about the dear Gospel. As now, at the last Imperial Diet in Augsburg, and otherwise, although they also lived well by heart, and dressed themselves princely in silk and gold, and were to be seen as those who went to the vain roses, but must be daily among vain poisonous snakes, and felt in their hearts such unheard-of arrogance, defiance and

3) "St." is missing in the Erlanger. The same occurrence is repeated many times in this writing; we will not note it again.

4) Wittenberger: "Auch kündte ich zu unserer Zeit itzt" u. s. w.

366 Erl. 43, 22-25. interpretation of the 5th, 6th, and 7th chap. Matthaei. W. VII. SS2-SS3. 367

Disgrace, so much evil malice and words from the shameful papists, who have had their pleasure and joy from it, that they have bittered their hearts and, as much as there has been in them, have not allowed a happy hour, that they have had to eat everything into themselves, and do no more than complain to God with sighing and weeping. Such people know something of what is said: "Blessed are those who mourn and suffer," even though it is not apparent to them, and eat and drink with others, and sometimes laugh and joke, forgetting their suffering. For you must not think that mourning alone means weeping and wailing, or crying, as children and women do; which is not yet the right deep suffering, when it has come over the heart, and pours out of the eyes; but that is when the right great blows come, which strike and storm the heart, so that one cannot weep, and no one may lament.

For this reason, mourning and suffering is not a strange herb among Christians, even though it does not seem to be by heart, even though they would like to be joyful in Christ, and also outwardly, as much as they can. For they must daily see and feel in their hearts, when they look at the world, so much wickedness, willfulness, contempt and blasphemy against God and His Word, in addition to so much misery and misfortune caused by the devil, both in spiritual and worldly government, that they cannot have many happy thoughts, and their spiritual joy is very weak. And if they should always look at it, and not cast away their eyes from time to time, they could not be happy for a moment, it is enough that it happens and strikes more than they would like, that they must not seek it far.

(35) Therefore, if thou lift up thyself, and become a Christian, thou shalt learn what it is to mourn and to suffer. If you are no longer able, take a wife and sit down, and nourish yourself in the faith that you love God's word, and do what you are commanded in your position, then you will soon learn, both from neighbors and in your own home, that things will not go as you would like, and that they hinder and hinder everywhere, so that you will have enough to suffer, and you will see that your heart will hurt. Especially

But the dear preachers must learn this well, and be practiced daily with it, that they must eat into themselves all kinds of envy, hatred, scorn and ridicule, ingratitude, contempt and blasphemy, so that their heart and soul is pierced and tormented without ceasing.

The world, however, does not want such mourning or suffering, so it seeks such positions and lives in which it can have good days and not suffer anything from anyone, as was the position of the monks and priests. For she cannot suffer that in the divine state she should serve other people with vain worries, toil and labor, and receive nothing but ingratitude and contempt, and other evil deeds, for her reward. Therefore, if it does not go the way it wants, and one looks at the other sourly, they can do nothing but rumble with cursing and thunder, yes, with their fists, and soon want to take away property and honor, land and fortune. But God has chosen that they should not go so freely that they should neither see a body nor suffer, and gives them a reward, because they do not like to do it, that they nevertheless have to suffer it, and make it greater and greater with anger and impatience, and can have no consolation nor a good conscience. But the Christians have the advantage that, though they suffer, yet they shall be comforted, and both here and there shall be blessed.

Therefore, whoever does not want to be a child of the world and have a part with the Christians, let him also be found in the register, that he may help to groan and to bear sorrow, that he may also be comforted, as this promise reads. Therefore one reads an example in the prophet Ezekiel Cap. 9, 2. ff., how God sent out six men with deadly force over the city of Jerusalem. But he sent one of them with a scribe to go through the midst of the city and write a mark on the foreheads of all who sighed and mourned because of the shameful things that were happening, and to see it pass through their hearts. And he that was so marked should live, and the rest, but all should be put to death. Behold, this is the advantage of Christians, that, though they see much sorrow and distress in the world, yet at last it comes to pass, when the world is most secure, and in

The little wheel turns back, and suddenly a calamity comes upon them, in which they must remain and perish, but they are snatched out and saved. As the dear Lot was saved in Sodom, because they had long tormented and broken his heart (as St. Peter says [2 Epist. 2, 7. 8.]) with their shameful nature. Therefore let the world now laugh and live in merriment, according to its lust and will. And if thou must mourn and bear grief, and see thy heart daily grieved, suffer thyself, and keep the saying, that thou mayest be pleased, and comfort thyself with it, and also outwardly refresh thyself, and make thyself merry, as much as thou canst.

38 For those who thus mourn may well have joy and take what they can, so that they do not sink into sadness. For Christ also says these very words, and promises comfort, that they should not despair in their sorrow, nor let their heart's joy be taken away and extinguished, but should mix such sorrow with comfort and refreshment; otherwise, if they had neither comfort nor joy, they would faint and wither away. For no man is able to endure vain mourning, for it saps sap and strength from the body, as the wise man says [Sir. 30:25, 38:19]: "Sadness has killed many people." Item [Proverbs 17:22]: "A sad spirit dries up the marrow in the legs." Therefore, such people should not only be given a break, but should also be told and urged to make themselves happy at times, if they can, or even to alleviate such grief and forget it a little.

39 For this reason Christ does not want there to be only mourning and sorrow, but wants to prevent those who do not want to mourn at all, and have good days and all their comfort here, and teach his Christians, when they are in trouble and have to mourn, that they know that this pleases God, and also let it please them, not to curse and rage or despair, as if their God did not want to have mercy. Where this is the case, the bitter morsel is to be mixed with honey and sugar and soothed or alleviated, which is this promise that he will be well pleased with it and that he will pronounce them blessed.

comforted here also, and there the suffering shall even be taken away from them.

40 Therefore let the world and all who harm us go in the name of their Lord the devil, and let us sing this song and rejoice in the name of God and Christ. For they shall not go out as they will, but though they rejoice in our calamities now, and do us much harm, yet let us have good courage, and let them weep and wail at last, when we are comforted and made merry.

V. 5 Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

(41) This passage follows finely on the first, where he said: "Blessed are the poor in spirit" etc. For as he promised above [v. 3] the kingdom of heaven and eternal good, so here he also adds a promise of this temporal life and good here on earth.

But how does it rhyme together, "to be poor" and "to possess the land"? I think the preacher has forgotten what he started with. For if one is to possess the land and goods, then one does not have to be poor. But here he means "to possess the land" to have all kinds of goods here on earth. Not that each one should have a whole country, otherwise God would have to create even more worlds, but the goods that God gives to each one, so that he gives a wife, children, cattle, house, yard, and all that belongs to it, so that he can sit and stay in the country (where he lives) and be master of his goods, as the Scriptures usually speak, and Ps. 37, [v. 9. 11.] often says "those who wait for the Lord will inherit the land"; item [v. 22.], "his blessed ones inherit the land" etc. Therefore he brings here the gloss itself, that to be spiritually poor, of which he said before, is not to be a beggar, or to throw away money and goods. For here he wants them to dwell and remain in the land, and to deal with earthly goods, as we will hear further.

(43) Now what does "to be gentle" mean? Here you must know, first of all, that Christ speaks nothing at all of the authorities and their office; for it does not belong to them to be 1) meek (as we have said in the following passage).

1) Jenaer: the.

He says only of individual persons how each one should live for himself against others, apart from his office and rule, as father and mother, where they do not live as father and mother against their children, nor do their father and mother office, that is, against those who are not called father or mother, as neighbors and other people. For I have often said that the two must be widely distinguished, office and person. There is much another man, who is called Hans, or Martin, and who is called Churfürst, or Doctor and Preacher.

44. for here two different persons become equal in one human being. One in which we are created and born, according to which we are all equal among ourselves, man, woman, child, young, old etc. But when we are born, God clothes and adorns you to another person, makes you a child, me a father, one a lord, the other a servant, this one a prince, that one a citizen: Prince, that one a citizen, and so on. This is then called a divine person, as one who holds a divine office, and walks adorned in his glory, and is not badly called Hans or Claus, but a prince of Saxony, or father and lord. Of this he speaks nothing here, but lets them go for themselves in their office and regiment, as he has ordered, but of the mere, individual, natural person, what each one should do for himself, as a man, toward the other.

45 Therefore, where we are in office and authority, we should 1) and must be sharp and strict, angry and 2) punish etc. For here we must do what God puts into our hands and calls us to do for His sake. Otherwise, what goes beyond the office, let each one learn for himself to be gentle toward everyone, that is, not to deal with his neighbor with unreasonableness, hatred or revenge, as those who are called Hans with their heads through, who never want to suffer anything nor give way, but to destroy the world and the mountain.

1) In the old editions: "sol".

2) "and" is missing in the Erlanger.

and move trees, do not want to interrogate anyone, nor can they take credit for anything, and quickly tie up sackcloth and rope, thinking nothing but how they want to take revenge and strike again. This does not prevent the authorities from punishing and wreaking vengeance on God's account, but also does not give room where a judge, mayor, lord or prince is a rogue, and mixes the two personalities together, and overrides his office out of his own will of courage, or out of envy, hatred and enmity (as commonly happens) under the appearance and cover of office and law. As if our neighbors wanted to do something against us under the name of the authorities, which they otherwise could not do.

46 And especially he speaks again to his Jews, as he began, who stood straight on the sense that they should not suffer anything from any Gentile and stranger, and would do well to only take revenge confidently, and in addition they used sayings from Moses, as Deut. 28, 13: "The Lord will make you the head and not the tail, and you will only float above and not lie below 3) etc. Which would be right. But it is said that if God Himself does it, then it is well done. For it is much different when he says, "I will do it," and when we do it ourselves without command. What he says, that shall and must be done. What we say, that happens, if it can, or remains probably even after. Therefore it is not that thou wilt do it when he shall do it, and wait not till he bid thee do it, and yet accept such a promise, and defy it.

(47) Behold, Christ punishes such foolish saints here, who think that every man is lord in the whole world and has a right to it, that he suffers nothing, but only rumbles and rages, and drives by force to protect his own, and teaches us that whoever wants to rule and possess his own property, estate, and farm with peace, must be gentle, so that he can provide, 4) and drive with reason, and suffer what he can always suffer. For it can not fail, it will sometimes your neighbor

3) In the Bible: "to be below". The issues: "subject to".

4) provided - overlooked.

They will take advantage of you and do too much, either by mistake or out of spite. If it is accidental, then you do not make it good because of you, that you neither want nor can tolerate anything. But if it be wantonness, thou makest him worse, so that thou shalt be hostile, and thou shalt be a throbber, and he shall laugh at thee, and atone for his pleasure, and be angry with thee, and do thee harm, so that thou canst have no peace, neither needest thine with tranquillity.

(48) Therefore choose one of two things which thou wilt: that thou mayest either live among men with meekness and patience, and keep that which thou hast with peace and a good conscience; or lose thine own with rumbling and rumbling, and have no rest. For there it is decreed, "The meek shall inherit the land." And behold even the strange heads, which always quarrel and fight about goods and other things, and give way to no one, but want to carry out everything with their heads, so that they do not get into more trouble and war than they always want to win, and finally lose land and people, house and farm, with discord and an evil conscience. God also pronounces His blessing on this, which is thus: "Do not be meek, so that you do not keep the dear land, nor enjoy a morsel with peace. But if you want to drive right and have peace, then let your neighbor's willfulness and iniquity subdue and extinguish themselves, otherwise you can do nothing dearer to the devil, nor do yourself more harm, than that you are hostilely angry and rumbling. If you have an authority, declare it and let them look at it. For they are set so that they will not suffer the innocent to be oppressed. God will also take care that his word and order remain, and that you possess the land according to this promise. Then you will have peace and blessing from God, but your neighbor will have strife, along with God's displeasure and curse.

49) But this sermon is not acceptable to anyone, because Christians are and believe and know that they have their treasure in heaven, which is certain to them and cannot be taken away; therefore they must also have enough here, even though 2) they do not have chests and pockets full

1) In the Jena: "with the".

2) Wittenberger: da.

red guilders. Knowing this, why would you allow your joy to be shattered and taken away, even to cause trouble, and deprive yourself of such a wonderful blessing?

50 See, now you have three pieces, with three rich promises, that he who is a Christian must have enough, both temporally and eternally, although he must suffer much here, both inwardly in the heart and outwardly, again the children of the world, because they do not want to suffer poverty, nor suffering, nor violence, neither the kingdom of heaven nor temporal goods with peace and tranquility keep and enjoy. You may read further Ps. 37, which is the right gloss on this piece, and describes abundantly how the meek shall possess the land, and the wicked shall be cut off.

V. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.

(51) Righteousness in this place must not be called the main Christian righteousness, by which the person becomes pious and pleasing before God. For I have said before [§ 24.) that these eight pieces are nothing else but a doctrine of the fruits and good works of a Christian, before which faith must first be there as the tree and principal piece, or summa of his righteousness and blessedness.

The righteousness of the world is the righteousness of the world, without all works and merit, from which such sticks must all grow and follow. Therefore understand here the outward righteousness

in the sight of the world, as we hold one against another. That this may be the short and simple opinion of these words: This is a righteously blessed man, who always perseveres and strives with all his strength that it may go well everywhere, and that everyone may do right, and helps to keep and promote this with words and deeds, with counsel and action.

Now this is also a delicious piece, which understands a great deal of good works, but is also very strange; so that we put it into examples, that if a preacher wants to be found in this piece, he must be so skilled that he instructs every man in his position, and helps him to lead him rightly, and does what belongs to it. And where he sees that there is a lack and does not work properly, that he be there, warn, punish and improve, how and with what he can.

374 Erl. 4s, 31-33. interpretation of the 5th, 6th and 7th chap. Matthaei. W. VII, [sr-sss. 375

So that I, as a preacher, do not fail in my office, nor the others in theirs, that they may follow my teaching and preaching, and so be right on both sides. Wherever there are such people who take care of it and are serious about doing right or being found righteous in character and deeds, "they hunger and thirst for righteousness. And if it were so, there would be no evil and 1) injustice, but righteousness and blessedness on earth. For what is the righteousness of the world but that every man do in his estate what he owes? which is called the right of the same estate, as man's right and woman's right, child's right, servant's right and maid's right in the house, citizen's right or city's right in the country; all of which is that those who are to preside over and govern other people perform such office with diligence, care and faithfulness, the others also 2) perform the same owed service and obedience faithfully and willingly.

53. but he does not put such words in vain: Hunger and thirst for righteousness. By this he means that great earnestness, desire and ardor, and unceasing diligence are necessary; that where there is no such hunger and thirst, nothing ever comes of it. The cause is this: for it has too great and many hindrances, both from the devil, who gets in the way and bars his way everywhere, and from the world, as from 3) its children, which is so wicked that it cannot suffer a pious man who would gladly do right for himself, or help other people to do so, but puts every plague on them, so that one might grow weary and discontented over it for a long time. For it is painful to see such shameful things happening, and to have nothing but ingratitude, contempt, hatred and persecution to reward one's vain good deeds. Therefore also 4) many people, who did not like to see such displeasure, finally despaired of it, and ran away from the people into the deserts, and became monks out of it. So that this proverb has always been true: Despairing makes

1) Wittenberger and Erlanger: still.

2) "also" is missing in the Jena.

3) "of" is missing in the Wittenberger.

4) Wittenberger: still.

a monk. Either that one does not dare to feed oneself and runs into a monastery for the sake of one's belly, as the great multitude has done; or that one despairs of the world and does not dare to remain pious in it, nor to help the people.

54 But this is not called hungering and thirsting after righteousness. For he that will preach or govern in such a manner as to make himself weary and impatient, and creep into a corner, shall be slow to help the people. It is not called creeping to corners or into deserts, but running out, if you were inside, and offering both hands and feet, and your whole body, and putting in all that you have and are able. And I want to have such a man, who is hard against hard, so that he will not let anything deter or overpower him, and will not let any ingratitude or wickedness of the world overcome him, but will always push and persevere as much as he can with all his strength. In sum, there is such a hunger and thirst for righteousness that never lets up nor stops, and cannot be satisfied, neither seeking nor thinking of anything else, and despising everything that wants to hinder him, so that he only promotes and upholds justice. If he cannot make the world pious at all, let him do what he can. It is enough that he has done his part and helped some, even if it were only one or two. If the others do not want to follow, let them go in God's name. One must not run away for the sake of the wicked, but think in this way: It was not begun for their sake, nor left for their sake; perhaps, in time, some of them may also come, or even become fewer, and to some extent improve.

55 For here you have a comforting and certain promise, that Christ may entice and provoke his Christians, so that those who hunger and thirst for righteousness may be satisfied, that is, their hunger and thirst may be satisfied, so that they will not have labored in vain, and yet at last a small number will be brought in whom it will be well invested, and not only here on earth, but much more will be revealed in that life, when everyone will see what fruit such people have produced through their diligence and constant perseverance,

even though it does not go as they would like, and they must half despair of it. As if a pious preacher had snatched so many souls out of the devil's jaws and brought them to heaven, or a pious, faithful ruler had helped many lands and people, who will testify to him 1) and praise him before all the world.

(56) Against this are the false saints, who, because of their great holiness, avoid the world and run into the deserts, or hide themselves away in corners, so that they may be exempt from such trouble and displeasure as they would otherwise have to have, and may not take on anything as it is done in the world. They do not even think that they should help or advise other people with teaching, instructing, admonishing, punishing and correcting, or at least with praying and sighing to God. Yes, it disgusts them, and they would be sorry that other people were pious, so that they alone would be considered holy, so that whoever wants to go to heaven must buy their good works and merits from them. In sum, they are so full of righteousness that they disgust other poor sinners, just as the great holy Pharisee, Luc. 18, 11. ff., from his great drunkenness, rejoiced and spat over the poor tax collector, that he was so gentle with him that he courted God and thanked Him that he alone was pious, and other people were evil.

(57) Behold, these are they against whom Christ here speaks, the shameful, proud, satiable spirits, who tickle themselves with it, and take pleasure and delight that other people are not pious, for which they should have mercy, pity and help; can do no more than despise, after-talk, judge and condemn everyone. And everything must be stink and filth, except what they themselves do. But that they should go and admonish or correct a poor, infirm sinner, they are as wary of that as of the devil. Therefore again they will have to hear Christ crying out to them, Luc. 6:25: "Woe to you who are full, for you will hunger. For as those who hunger and thirst now must be filled, so those who are full and full now must hunger forever, and yet no one can enjoy them, nor boast that they have helped or set any man right. So

1) "him" is missing in the Wittenberger.

you have briefly the opinion of this piece, which (as said) understands many good works, yes, all good works, so that each one may live rightly among the people for himself, and help promote all kinds of office and status; of which I have often said further elsewhere.

V. 7. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.

(58) This also is a fine fruit of faith, and well follows the preceding; he that shall help and encourage other people, that it may be right in all places, that he also may be kind and merciful, that is, that he may not soon rumble and rage where it is still lacking, and not

wants to go, 2) as it should go, and still hope for improvement. Because that is also the

The virtue of false holiness is that they cannot have compassion or mercy on the infirm and the weak, but want to keep it at the utmost 3) and to have it purest, and as soon as it is a little lacking, all mercy is gone, and there is vain raging and blustering. As St. Gregory also teaches to recognize such, and says: Vera justitia compassionem habet, falsa indignationem; true holiness is merciful and compassionate, but false holiness can do nothing but be angry and raging.

(59) For it goes on with all violence in the world, that it carries on all its willfulness and desolateness, under the beautiful, excellent pretense and cover that it does it precisely for the sake of righteousness. In the same way as it has hitherto, and still does, wreak its malice and treachery against the gospel under the name of protecting the truth and eradicating heresy, so it wants to deserve to be crowned by God for it, and to be lifted up to heaven, as the world that persecutes, strangles and burns its saints with great thirst and hunger for righteousness. 4) For they also want to trust the name of God. For they also want to have the name, yes, even more than the true saints, that they hunger and thirst for righteousness, lead to such great appearance and excellent

2) Erlanger: "nicht gehet".

3) "held" is missing in the Wittenberger.

4) Jenaer: the as.

Words that they think that God Himself should not know otherwise.

60 But the noble tree is known by its fruit. For where they ought to promote righteousness, that both spiritual and temporal government may be just, they do not do so, nor do they think to instruct and correct anyone, and live themselves in vain iniquity; and if anyone punishes their doings, or does not praise them, and does as they please, he must be a heretic, and be condemned to hell. Behold, such is certainly every false saint. For self-holiness makes him so proud that he despises everyone, and cannot have a kind and merciful heart. Therefore this is a necessary warning against such shameful saints, that each one may see where he has to deal with his neighbor, whom he should help and set right in his pride and nature, so that he may nevertheless also be merciful and forgive, so that it may be seen that you mean justice with a right heart, and not atone for your own willfulness and anger, and be so righteous as to deal kindly and cleanly with him who wants to forsake iniquity and amend himself, and take his infirmity or weakness into account and bear it until he comes afterward. But if you try all these things, and find no hope of correction, then you may let him go, and command those who have to punish.

(61) Now this is one part of mercy, that one should gladly forgive sinners and the infirm. The other is to be charitable to those who suffer outward distress or need shelter, which is called the works of mercy, from Matthew 25,

35. ff. The hopeful Jewish saints cannot do this either. For there is nothing but ice and frost, yes, a hard and stony heart, and not a drop of blood of desire nor love to do good to the neighbor, as well as no mercy to forgive sin; care and strive only for their belly, although another should die of hunger; that even with public sinners is much more mercy, than with such a saint. How then must follow, because they alone praise themselves and keep themselves pious, every one

They despise them and consider them as nothing, and think that all the world should serve them alone and give enough; but they owe no one to give or to serve.

(62) Therefore this preaching and exhortation is despised and in vain among such saints, and finds no disciples, for those who first cling to Christ and believe, know no holiness of their own in themselves, but, according to the foregoing, are poor, miserable, meek, and quite hungry and thirsty, and so skillful that they despise no one, but can take care of everyone's need and have compassion. To these is the comforting promise: "Blessed are you who are merciful, for you will find mercy again, both here and there, and such mercy as far surpasses all human kindness and mercy. For our mercy is not equal to God's mercy, nor are our goods equal to the eternal goods in the kingdom of heaven; nor does he so favor our good deeds toward our neighbor that he promises the kingdom of heaven for a penny, a hundred thousand florins, where we need it, for a drink of water.

(63) Whoever does not want to be moved by such excellent, comforting promises, let him turn the page and hear another verdict: Woe and cursed are the merciless, for they shall not receive mercy either. How the world is now full of such people, from the nobility, burghers and peasants, who sin against the dear Gospel so well that they not only give nothing to poor pastors and preachers, nor help them, but also take and plague them where they can, and do not act otherwise than as if they wanted to starve them and chase them out of the world; and yet they go along quite safely, thinking that God should keep quiet about it, and let everything be good that they do. But one day (misfortune) 1) will befall them, and, as I fear, someone will come who will make me (who warned enough) a prophet, and deal with them with all mercilessness, and take away their honor and goods,

1) Thus in the Jenaer. In the Wittenberg without parenthesis. "The misfortune" is missing in the Erlanger.

Life and limb to it; so that God's word may remain true, and whoever will not show mercy nor have mercy, will come upon vain wrath and eternal disgrace. As St. James also says [Cap. 2, 13]: "There will even be an unmerciful judgment on him who has not shown mercy."

64 Therefore also Christ on the last day will put on such unmercifulness alone for the highest, as done against Himself, all that we have done out of unmercifulness, and even pronounce the curse on them: 7,I have been hungry, thirsty, and you have not fed me nor given me drink" etc. "Therefore go, you cursed, into the eternal hellish fire" etc. [Matth. 25, 42. ff.] He warns and admonishes us faithfully, out of pure grace and mercy. Whoever does not want this, let him choose the curse and eternal damnation. Consider the rich man, Luc. 16:19 ff., who, though he saw poor Lazarum lying daily at his door, full of sores, yet had he not so much mercy as to give him a bundle of straw, or to allow the crumbs under his table. But behold, how high is he smelled, that he would gladly give an hundred thousand florins in hell, that he might boast of a thread which he had given him.

V. 8. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

This piece is a little subtle, and not so understandably spoken for us, who have coarse carnal hearts and senses, and are still hidden from all the sophists, who are supposed to be the most learned, that no one can tell you what a pure heart means, and even less what God means to look at? They walk around with vain dreams and loose thoughts, of things of which they themselves have never known anything.

Therefore we must look at these words according to the Scriptures and learn to understand them correctly. A pure heart, they dreamed, means that a man runs away from the people into a corner, monastery or desert, and does not think about the world, nor is concerned with worldly things and business, but plays with vain heavenly thoughts. They have not only deceived themselves and other people with such a doctrine, and dangerously misled them, but also

The people have done murderous harm by considering the works and statuses that must go on in the world, and which are ordered by God, as unclean.

The Scripture says of such a pure heart and thought that it may nevertheless be written that one is a husband, loves his wife and child, thinks for them and cares for them, and deals with other things that belong to them. For God has commanded all these things. But what God has commanded does not have to be impure; indeed, it is purity, so that God may be seen. Thus, when a judge performs his office and sentences an offender to death, it is not his, but God's office and work. Therefore it is a good, pure and holy work (if he is also a Christian), which he could not do if there were not first a pure heart. Item, so also a pure work and heart must be called, whether a servant or maidservant in the house does an improper, unclean work, as, to load dung, to wash children and to make them clean. Therefore it is a shameful perversion, that one should hold in such low esteem the deeds contained in the Ten Commandments, and look for other special, glittering works, just as if God did not have as pure a mouth or eyes as we do, nor as pure a heart and fist, when he creates both man and woman; how then should such work or thought make an unclean heart? But so shall they become blind men and fools, who despise God's word, and consider purity only according to the outward larvae and glitter of works, and in the meantime cause misfortune with their own flying thoughts, and gape to climb up to heaven, and grope after God, until they overthrow their own necks.

68 Therefore let us rightly understand what Christ means by a pure heart. First of all, notice that this sermon is most set and sharpened against the Judaizers: for as they did not want to suffer anything, but sought good days, pleasure and joy; nor did they want to hunger, nor to be merciful, but to be full, and only to be pious, and to judge and despise everyone: so also was their holiness, that they must be outwardly pure in body, skin, hair, clothing and food, so that there must not be a spot on their garment.

And if a man had a dead carcass untouched, or a scab, or a dung on his body, he had not to come among the people; they took that for purity. But this is not the end; I praise those who labor to be pure in heart, as he also says in Matt. 23:25: "You cleanse the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are full of robbery and devouring." Item v. 27: "You are like the whitewashed tombs, which outwardly also seem beautiful, but inwardly they are full of dead men's bones and all filthiness." Just as our clergy are now, even though they outwardly lead a beautifully clean life, and all things go on in the church in beautiful splendor and splendor, so that it laughs and is lovely to look at; but he does not ask for such purity, but wants the heart to be pure, even though it is outwardly a Cinderella in the kitchen, 1) black, rnstrigig 2) and besoben, and deals with vain filthy works.

(69) What then is a pure heart, or wherein is it? Answer: It is soon said, and you must not climb up to heaven, nor run into a monastery after it, and align yourself with your own thoughts, but beware of all that you know to be your own thoughts, as of vain mud and filth, and know, that a monk in the monastery, when he sits in his highest contemplation, and thinks of his Lord God, as he himself paints and dreams him, and wants to throw the world out of his heart, sits (with leave) in the mud, not up to his knees, but over his ears. For he goes about with his own thoughts without God's word, which is vain lies and deceit; as the Scriptures testify everywhere. But this is called a pure heart, which sees and thinks what God says, and puts God's word in place of its own thoughts. For this alone is pure in the sight of God, even purity itself, through which everything that is attached to it and goes in it becomes pure and is called pure. As if a common rough craftsman, cobbler or blacksmith, sits at home, whether he is unclean or rusty, or smells of blackness and pitch, and

1) Wittenberger: "in the churches".

2) i.e. sooty.

3) Erlanger: "and sprightly".

thinks: My God created me a man, and gave me my house, wife and child, and commanded me to love, and to nourish with my work etc. Behold, this man walketh with the word of God in his heart, and though he stinketh outwardly, yet inwardly he is as a balm before God.

But if he also comes into the high purity, that he also takes hold of the gospel and believes in Christ (without which this purity cannot be), then he is pure through and through, both inwardly in his heart toward God, and outwardly toward everything that is under him on earth, so that everything that he lives and does, walks, stands, eats and drinks, is pure to him, and nothing can make him impure. As when he looks at his wife, or even jokes with her, like the patriarch Isaac, Gen. 26, 8, (which disgusts a monk and makes him unclean). For there he has God's word, and knows that she 5) has given him God. But if he were to leave his wife and change his ways, or if he were to leave his trade or office and harm or annoy other people, etc. he would no longer be pure, for that would be against God's commandment.

As long as he remains in these two things, namely, in the word of faith toward God, which purifies the heart, and in the word of understanding, which teaches him what he should do toward his neighbor in his state, then everything is pure for him, even if he walks around with his fists and his whole body in vain blackness. A poor maid, if she does what she is supposed to do and is a Christian, is a beautiful, pure maiden before God in heaven, so that all the angels laugh at her and take pleasure in seeing her. Again, the most severe Carthusian, even if he fasts and mortifies himself to death, weeps vain tears with great devotion, and never thinks of the world, and yet is without faith in Christ and love toward his neighbor, he is a pure stink and filth, both inwardly and outwardly, so that both God and angels have vain horror and disgust before him.

Seventy-two: So you see how it is all in God's Word, that what is contained and goes in it must be called all pure, clean and snow-white.

4) Wittenberger: "to the height of".

5) "they" is missing in the Erlanger.

against God and man. Therefore St. Paul says Titus 1:15, 16: "To the pure all things are pure"; and again: "To the impure and unbelieving nothing is pure." Why so? "Because unclean is both their mind and conscience." How does this work? "For they well say they know God; but with works they deny it, because they are in whom God hath abomination. "etc. Behold how abominably the apostle depicts them, and chides the great Jewish saints. For, take before you a Carthusian monk, who thinks that if he lives in his strict rule, obedience, poverty, and without a wife, separated from the world, then he is pure. What is this but their own mind and thoughts, without God's word and faith, grown out of their heart? by which they alone consider themselves holy, and other people unclean. This is what St. Paul calls an impure mind, that is, everything they write and think.

Because such delusions and thoughts are impure, everything they do according to them must also be impure. And as the mind is, so is the conscience, that even if they should and 1) could help other people, they have a conscience according to such thoughts, which is bound to their caps, monastery and rule; weeping, if they should for a moment leave their thing in order to serve their neighbor, and deal with others, they would have committed the gravest sin, and have defiled themselves altogether. All this makes it impossible for them to recognize God's word and creature, even though they speak it with their mouths, as St. Paul says. For if they knew how and for what purpose they had been created by God, they would not despise such statuses, nor would they set up their own thing, but would let them remain pure and honor them as God's work and creature, and would gladly remain in them and serve their neighbor. This would be to recognize God rightly, both in His word and in His creature, and to keep both pure in heart and conscience, which thus believes and concludes: What God creates and ordains must be pure and good, for he makes nothing impure and sanctifies everything through the word he has given to all classes and creatures.

1) Wittenberger: still.

(74) Therefore, beware of all your own thoughts; if you want to be pure in the sight of God, see that you establish your heart and attach it to

God's word, then you are pure above all the Carthusians and saints in the world. When I was young, this saying was praised: Stay gladly alone, and your hearts will remain pure; and to this I added a saying of St. Bernard, who says: As often as he was with people, so often did he make merry. As one also reads in Vitis Petrum about a hermit who would not let anyone come to him, nor talk to anyone, and said: "Whoever deals with people, the angels cannot come to him. There are two others who would not let their mother see them, and when she often waited for them and hurried them along, they soon closed the door and left her standing outside, weeping for a long time, until at last they persuaded her to go away and save herself until they would see each other in that life.

Behold, this has been called the most delicious thing, and the most high holiness and perfect purity. But what is it? It is God's word: "You shall honor your father and mother" [Ex. 20:12]. If they had considered this holy and pure, they would have shown all honor, love and friendship to their mother and neighbor. But out of their own thoughts and self-chosen holiness, they separated themselves from them, and just so that they wanted to be the purest, they defiled themselves before God in the most shameful way. Just as if desperate boys could not make such thoughts and appearances, that one must say: These are living saints, who can despise the world, and deal with vain angels; yes, with angels from [the] abyss of hell. The angels see nothing dearer, for where one deals with God's word, there they delight to dwell. Therefore, leave them unsworn in heaven, and seek them here on earth from your neighbor, father and mother, child and all, to do to them as God has commanded, and the angels will not be far from you.

(76) I have said this so that one may learn to be right in this piece and not look so far as the monks, who have thrown it out of the world and put it in a corner or in the cap, which is

386 Erl. 43, 44-47. interpretation of the 5. 6. and 7. cap". Matthaei. W. vn, S7S-S8I. 387

Let it be put where God has put it, namely, in the heart, which is attached to God's word and, according to the same, needs its state and all creatures;

so that both, the main purity of faith towards God, then also outwardly in this life, are included in it, and everything comes from obedience to God's word and commandment, whether it is physically pure or impure. As I said about a judge, if he should deny life to someone, and reach into the blood, and defile himself with it, which a monk considers an abominably unclean work; but the Scripture says that it is God's service, as St. Paul Rom. 13, 4. The authority that wields the sword is called God's servant, and is not her, but his work and command, which he puts on it, and wants to have from her. So now you have what is called a pure heart, which walks in the pure and clear word of God.

But what is the reward, or what does he promise them? It is "that they may behold God. A glorious title and excellent treasure! But what does it mean to see God? The monks have their dreams here, that it is to sit in a cell and think up to heaven, and to lead a contemplative life, as they have called it, and have written many books about it. But that will not be called looking at God for a long time, if you come trolling with your thoughts and climb up to heaven, as the sophists and our red spirits and mad saints want to measure and master God, 1) his word and work, with their heads; but that is when you have a right faith that Christ is your savior, etc., then you see quickly that you have a gracious God. For faith leads you up, and opens God's heart and will to you, since you see His abundant grace and love. That is, to behold God rightly, not with bodily eyes (so that no one can see him in this life), but with faith, which sees his fatherly, kind heart, in which there is neither wrath nor displeasure. For 2) he who regards him as angry does not see him.

is missing in the Wittenberg.

2) "For" is missing in the Wittenberg.

3) but has drawn a veil and a covering, even a dark cloud, before his face. But to see his face, as the Scripture says, is to know him rightly as a gracious, pious Father, to whom one may look for all good things, which come only through faith in Christ.

78. after that, if you live in your state according to God's word and commandment, with your husband, wife, child, neighbor, and neighbor, you can see how 4) God will do this.

and conclude that [it] pleases him; as that is not your own dream, but his.

Word and command is that which neither leans nor moves us. Now this is a great thing, and

a treasure above all that one can desire or think, to know that one stands and lives rightly in the sight of God, so that both one's heart can be sure and boast of his grace, and know that even his outward life and conduct are pleasing to him. From this it follows that he is cheerful and confident to do and suffer anything, and nothing can frighten him or make him despondent. Which none are able to do, who do not have such faith and a pure heart, which only follows God's word. As all monks have publicly taught: no man can know whether he is in grace or not. And it serves them right that, because they despise faith and right divine works, and seek their own purity, they never have to see God, nor know how they are with Him.

79 For if you ask one who has prayed his times most diligently, who has said his mass daily, and who has fasted, whether he is certain that this pleases God, he must say that he does not know, and that he does it all by adventure; if it is, it is. Nor is it possible for anyone to say otherwise. For no one will be able to boast of it: God gave me the cap or called me to wear it; He only commanded the mass etc. We have all walked in such blindness until now, when we have done so many works, donated, fasted, prayed rosaries, and yet we may never say: This work pleases God, I am certain of it, and I will die on it.

3) Erlanger: "only" instead of: "has".

4) Wittenberg and Erlanger: what.

Therefore, no one can boast that he has ever seen God in all his works or life. Or, if someone, out of presumption, wanted to boast about such works and thought that God should look at them and reward them, he would not have seen God, but the devil in God's place. For there is no word of God anywhere, but everything is invented by men and grown out of their hearts. Therefore, it can never make a heart certain nor satisfied, but remains hidden under presumption until it comes to the last moves, when it all falls down and drives it into despair, and thus never comes to see God's face.

But whoever takes hold of God's word and remains in faith, can stand before God and look upon him as his gracious Father, must not be afraid that he will stand behind him with a club, is certain that he will graciously look upon him and smile upon him, along with all the angels and saints in heaven. Sifting is what Christ means by this saying, that all who have such a pure heart may see God. In this way he separates and separates all other purity, so that where this is not present, although everything else in man is pure, it is not valid before God and can never see God. Again, where the heart is pure, everything is pure and does no harm, even though everything is impure by heart; yes, even though the body is full of sores and leprosy.

V. 9. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

Here the Lord commends with a high title and honorable glory those who work diligently to make peace, not only for themselves but also among others, to help unite evil and confused things, to tolerate strife. To prevent and prevent war and bloodshed. This is also a great virtue, but very strange in the world and among false saints. For those who are not Christians are both liars and murderers, like their father the devil. Therefore they serve nowhere but to cause strife, strife, war, etc. As one now finds among clergymen, bishops and princes almost vain bloodhounds, who with many emblems

have proved that they would see nothing better than that we should all swim in blood. So when a prince is angry, he soon thinks he must start a war; then he sets fire and incites everyone until so much has been lost and so much blood has been spilled that the rebuke comes, and gives several thousand guilders for the souls that have perished. They are and remain bloodhounds, cannot rest until they have smelled themselves and atoned for their wrath, until they lead country and people into misery and misfortune, and still want to be called Christian princes and have a right cause.

There is more to war than having a right cause. For although it is not forbidden here that one should not wage war, as has been said, Christ does not want to take anything away from the authorities and their office, but only teaches the individual persons who want to live a Christian life for themselves, it does not apply that a prince wants to wage war with his neighbors, whether he has a right cause and the other one is wrong; but it is said: "Blessed are the peacemakers", that whoever wants to be a Christian and God's child, not only does not start war and strife, but helps and advises to peace wherever he can, even if right and causes would be enough to get. It is enough, if one tries everything, and nothing wants to help, that one must do an emergency defense to protect country and people. Therefore, not Christians, but the children of the devil, shall be called the angry junk lords, who from hour to hour plunge knives, and twitch leather, for the sake of a word; but much more, who now persecute the gospel, and innocently burn or murder the same preachers, who have done them no evil, but all good, and served them with body and soul. But we do not speak of these here, but only of those who want to have justice and a good cause, and think that they should not suffer as high and royal persons, even though other people want to suffer.

83) Against this it says: Where injustice and violence happen to you, that 1) it is not valid that you would consult your foolish head, and soon begin to avenge, and

1) "it" is missing in the Erlanger.

But that thou think and seek how it may be tolerated and peace be established. But if it be not so, and thou canst not suffer it, thou hast right and authority in the land, whereby thou mayest duly seek it. For they are appointed to prevent and punish such things. Therefore, whoever does violence to you sins not only against you, but much more against the authorities themselves, because it is not your command, but their command, that peace be kept. Therefore let your judge, to whom it is commanded, avenge and punish such as against whom your adversary has forfeited himself. But if thou wilt avenge thyself, thou doest greater evil, that thou mayest also be guilty of the same sin, as he that sinneth against the authorities, and encroacheth upon their office, and maketh thine own cause unjust. For it is said: He who smites again is unjust, and: To strike again makes strife.

84 Behold, this is one thing which Christ here requires, against the revengeful and rumorous heads. And is called peacemakers, first, those who help the country and its people to peace, as pious princes, councillors or lawyers, and authorities, who sit in their office and regiment for the sake of peace. Then also pious citizens and neighbors, who judge, expiate and take away strife and discord (caused by evil, poisonous tongues) among man and woman or neighbors by their wholesome good tongues. As St. Augustine praises his mother Monica, that when she saw two at odds, she always spoke the best on both sides, and what she heard good from one, she brought to the other; but what she heard evil, she kept silent, or soothed it as much as she could, and thus reconciled much among themselves. For this is especially true among the womenfolk, among whom the shameful vice of after-talk reigns, that much misfortune is often caused by an evil tongue. The bitter and poisonous devil's wives serve this purpose, who, when they hear a word from someone, sharpen it and embitter it most severely against others, so that sometimes misery and murder result from it.

85. all that makes us naturally an-

1) "it" is missing in the Erlanger.

The shameful, diabolical filth clings to the fact that everyone likes to hear and talk the worst about his neighbor, and tickles himself when he sees a flaw in someone else. If a woman were as beautiful as the sun, and had some mark or spot on her body, then mail should forget everything about the other, and only look at the spot and say about it. So if one were the most famous of honors and virtues, let a poisonous tongue come, which once saw her laughing with one, and so disgrace her that all her praise and honor should be obscured. These are real poisonous spiders, which can suck nothing but poison from a beautiful, lovely rose, and spoil both the flowers and the sap, from which a little bee sucks sweet honey and leaves the roses unharmed.

(86) So do these, who see nothing in other men, except where they are infirm or unclean, which they can blame; but what good they have in themselves they see not. How then there are many virtues in man, which the devil cannot destroy, but puts out of sight, or hides them, that they should not be seen. For example, in a woman, though she be infirm in every way, and have no other virtue, yet is she God's creature, and can at least carry water, or wash swaddling clothes. And if no man on earth is so wicked, there is something in him that must be praised. What is it 2) then, that one puts good out of sight, and forms and looks only into the eyes, where he is unclean, as if one had desire to see another, with leave, only in the buttocks, when God has covered even the most dishonest members in the body, and (as Paul 1 Cor. 12, 23. says) has given the most honor? And we are such unfaithful people that we only seek out what is unfaithful and stinks, and rummage through it like swine.

(87) Behold, these are also the children of the true devil, who himself is called Diabolus, that is, a desecrator and blasphemer, as he hath his air in that he most grievously defiles us and embittereth us one among another, that he may cause only murder and wretchedness, and no peace nor peace of mind.

2) Erlanger: "is deß".

Let harmony remain between brothers and neighbors, husband, wife.

(88) I once heard an example of two married couples 1) who lived together in such love and harmony that it was spoken of throughout the city. And when he could not prevent this by any means, he sent an old brat 2) to the woman, who told her how her husband was keeping company with another woman and was planning to kill her; he therefore made her heart bitter against her husband and advised her to take a shearing knife secretly to herself, so that she would appear before him. When she had done this, she came to her husband and told him the same thing about her, how she wanted to murder him, and that as a sign (she said) he would find a shearing knife in her bed at night; so he found it and cut off her neck with it. Whether this is true or fictitious, it shows what evil poisonous mouths can do, even between those who love each other with all their hearts, so that they may be called devil's mouths or devil women, as he, the devil, Diabolus, is called nothing else than a bitter, poisonous, evil mouth.

Therefore, beware of such things, that you do not hear them, nor do you give them heed, and learn that what you hear your neighbor say, you should disguise for the best, or even cover up, so that you may make and keep peace and harmony. In this way, you may be called God's child with all honors before the world and the angels in heaven. You should ever let this honor tempt and entice you, yes, run after it, if it were possible for you, until the end of the world, and gladly give everything you have for it. Now you have offered it here, and presented it in vain, you must neither give nor do anything for it, unless you want to be God's child, that you also show yourself in this way, and do your father's work for your neighbor. For even so our Lord Christ hath done unto us, in that he hath reconciled us to the Father, and brought us into grace, and still daily represents us, and speaketh the best things for us. So do thou also, that thou mayest be an atonement for thy neighbor.

1) The same history is also found in the Tischreden Cap. 43, § 40, Walch, St. Louis Edition, Vol. XXII, 1146.

2) In the old editions: "Balck".

3) Be a good man and mediator between your neighbor, and bear the best on both sides; but keep silent about the evil that the devil has brought in, or, as much as you can, talk it out. If you come to Greten, do as I said about St. Monica, St. Augustine's mother, and say: Oh, dear N., why are you so bitter? she really does not mean any harm; I do not notice anything different about her, except that she would like to be your dear sister etc. Likewise, if you come to Catharine, do the same 4). Then you would have made peace on both sides, as much as is in you, as a true child of God.

90. but if thou wilt or must speak evil, do as Christ taught thee [Matt. 18:15, 1. do not carry it to others, but go to him who has done it, and admonish him to improve himself; not so that thou lookest where thou goest, and leavest the person to whom it pertains; speak where thou oughtest to be silent, and be silent here where thou oughtest to speak. This is the one and first way that you act alone between yourself and your neighbor. But if you must tell others, where this will not help, tell those to whom it is due to punish, father and mother, lords or wives, mayors and judges etc. This would be right and proper, so that evil would be put away and punished. Otherwise, if you carry it out among other people, the person remains unimproved and the evil unpunished, and is nevertheless carried out by you and others, so that everyone washes his mouth with it. See what a pious physician does with a sick child: he does not run among the people and cry it out, but goes to him and takes his pulse and other places where it is needed. Not to atone for his harm or to laugh at him, but out of a good heartfelt opinion to help him. Thus we read of the holy patriarch Joseph, Genesis 37:2, who was with his brothers among the cattle, and when evil cries came against them, he went and brought it before their father, as their chief.

3) In the Wittenberg and in the Jena: sinful". Walch has already improved this error. Correct also in Latin: in reconciliandis proximis officiosum.

4) "thue" is missing in the Erlanger.

Lord, who was due to see and punish, because they did not want to hear him.

91. But do you say: Why do you yourself attack the pope and others publicly, and do not keep peace? Answer: One should advise the best and help to peace, and keep silent everything that 1) one can keep silent. But when sin is evident and spreads too far, or does harm publicly (as the pope's teaching), then it is no longer necessary to keep silent, but to defend and punish, especially me and others who are in public office, to whom it is due to teach and warn everyone. For I am commanded and charged as a preacher and doctor, who is required to see that no one is deceived, so that I can give an account for it at the last judgment. So St. Paul commands Apost. 20:28 commands the preachers to watch and take care of the whole flock against the wolves that would come among them etc. So also it behooves me to punish those who sin publicly, that they may amend; just as a judge must publicly condemn and punish the wicked on his own authority. For it has been said enough that Christ is not speaking here of any public office, but of all Christians in general, since we are all equal before God.

V. 10. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

(92) I have said above (24) that these things and promises must all be understood in faith, from things not seen nor heard, and not said from outward appearances. For how can he be well and blessed who is poor in outward appearance, and mourns or is afflicted, and suffers all manner of persecution, which all the world and reason call evil, and flee? Therefore, whoever desires the blessedness and goods of which Christ says here, must lift up his heart above all sense and reason, and not judge himself according to what he feels, but conclude thus: If I am poor, I am not poor. I may be poor outwardly according to the flesh, but before God I am rich in faith. So, when he feels sad, sorrowful, and distressed, he is not poor.

1) "das" is missing in the Wittenberger and in the Erlanger.

If a man is rich and blessed, he does not have to judge or say that he is an unhappy man, but he can throw himself around and say, "I feel sadness, sorrow and heartache, but I am blessed, happy and confident in God's word. The same thing happens in the world, that those who are called rich and blessed are not. For Christ cries woe to them, and calls them wretched, though it seems as if they were well off and doing very well. Therefore they should also lift up their thoughts above riches and good days, which they feel, and say, I am rich indeed, and live in vain joys; but woe is me, if I have not something else. For there must surely be misery, sorrow and heartache among them, which will pass over me before I feel it and understand it. So go through all these pieces, which all have a different appearance before the world, but different according to these words.

93 Thus far we have dealt with almost all the elements of a Christian being and spiritual fruits of faith, according to the two elements: first, for his person, that he is poor, afflicted, miserable, lacking, and hungry; and second, that he is a fruitful, benevolent, merciful, peaceable man toward others, and does nothing but good works. Here he now adds the last thing, how it goes over him, that he, above that, that he is full of good works, also against enemies and bad boys, must have this as a reward from the world, that he is persecuted, and adds body, life and everything over it.

94 Therefore, if thou wilt be a Christian, consider this, that thou be undaunted, and not therefore despair, nor be impatient, but be cheerful and confident of it, and know that it is not evil for thee when it is so. For this is what happened to him and to all the saints (as will soon follow these words), and is therefore foretold to those who want to be Christians that they should and must suffer persecution. Therefore you may choose which you will. You have two ways before you: either to heaven and eternal life, or to hell; either with Christ, or with the world. But this you must know: If you live according to this, that you want to have good days here and no persecution, you will not get to heaven with Christ; and again. And in short, you have to dec-

Neither let Christ and heaven depart, nor consider that you will suffer all kinds of persecution and affliction in the world. Summa, whoever wants to have Christ must put body, life, goods, honor, the world's favor and grace there, and not be frightened by contempt, ingratitude or persecution. The reason is this: The devil is an evil, angry spirit, and neither can nor will suffer a man to come to God's kingdom. But if he intends to do so, he gets in the way, awakens and tries everything he can against it.

Therefore, if you want to be God's child, think and prepare yourself for persecution; as the wise man says [Sir. 2:1], and Paul 2 Tim. 3:12: "All who want to live godly in Christ must suffer persecution." Item, Christ himself [Matth. 10, 24. 25.]: "The disciple shall not have it better than his master. If they have persecuted me, they will persecute you also. "etc. Nothing else comes of it; therefore it is said, Blessed are they that suffer persecution for the kingdom of heaven's sake, that they may know what comfort they have. For otherwise it is a grievous and unhappy thing to look upon outwardly, and it is slothful to sit always in one's body and estate. But when faith grasps this, it can rise above it and think, "Now Christ has said that I am blessed and well off. Because he has said it, I let this be my comfort, and I am well pleased. The word shall make my heart great, even greater than heaven and earth. For what are all they that persecute me against this man, or against his word? If there is one or two who persecute us, there are many more of them, even ten thousand angels, compared to one who is with us, and who laughs at us, comforts us and saves us, together with all the saints who agree with Christ and God Himself. Therefore we must not leave such words so cold and raw, but rather blow them out and make them great, and set them against all persecution: then we will see and learn that all our suffering is to be despised as nothing compared to this high comfort and eternal good [Rom. 8:18].

96 But he clearly uses the word "for righteousness' sake" to indicate that it is not enough to be persecuted where this is not the case. For the devil and evil people must well

suffer also that they are persecuted, and one knave often falls into the hair of another, and are not friends among themselves; as one murderer persecutes another, a Turk wars against a Tartern, but are not blessed because of this; but it is only for those who are 1) persecuted for righteousness' sake; as also 1 Petr. 4:15 says: "Let no one among you suffer as a murderer, 2) thief or evildoer" etc. Therefore it is not valid to boast or cry of great suffering without this, as the unholy monks have deceived the poor people, so they have been executed as punishment for their evil deed, and so comforted that they should put such death for their sin. But beware of the death that shall be for your sin. For it belongs to the abyss of hell. There must first be righteousness, and the death of the Lord Christ.

97 Therefore see to it that you first have a true divine cause, so that you may suffer persecution and be certain of it, so that your conscience may stand and remain upon it, even if the whole world stands against you. Therefore, above all things, God's word must be certain and firm, so that no doubt may be made of it after wavering. As if emperors, bishops, and princes now wanted to forbid you married life, freedom to eat, or both forms of the sacrament, and persecute you about it, you must see to it that your heart is certain of the matter and completely resolved that God's word wants such things to be free and unbidden; indeed, it earnestly commands you to keep it, and to stake life and limb on it. So you have the defiance to say, "This thing is not mine, but my Lord Christ's. For I have not devised it out of my own head, neither have I undertaken and begun it out of my own or any man's counsel and will, but I have received it through the mouth of Christ, brought down from heaven and proclaimed, who does not lie to me nor trust me, but is truth and righteousness itself. At the man's word I will dare, suffer, do and leave what I should, and his one word shall be of more value to me to comfort and strengthen my heart than to frighten all the devil's and the world's rages and troubles.

1) "willen" is missing in the Erlanger.

2) Erlanger: "or thief".

For what is it if a prince or emperor is mad and foolish with raging, and threatens with the sword, fire or gallows, when my Christ, on the other hand, speaks kindly into my heart and comforts me with such promises that I am blessed, and heartily well off with God in heaven, and all the heavenly host and creature press me blessedly? If I have such a heart and such courage that I can suffer for the sake of His word and work, why should I be frightened by such wretched people, who rage and spray hostilely against God, but suddenly vanish like smoke and like the poor bubbles of water? As also the prophet Isaiah, Cap. 51, 12. 13., says: "I am your comforter. What is it then that you are afraid of men who must die, and of the children of men who are taken away as hay? And forget the Lord that made thee, that stretcheth out the heavens, and layeth the foundations of the earth," etc., that is, he is eternal and almighty, who comforteth thee, and hath pleasure in thee; though they all be gone, yet he sitteth up, and thou also. Why do you want to accept more the grief and throbbing of a miserable, stinking sack of maggots than such divine comfort and favor? for that you should thank God, and be glad from the heart that you are worthy to suffer such things, as the apostles, Acts 5:41, went away with joy and leaping when they were reviled and chastised.

99. Behold, are we not now highly blessed with these words, if we but accept them with love and thanksgiving? For there is no lack of persecution. And we have the great advantage that our adversaries themselves cannot condemn our cause, and must confess without their thanks that it is right and true; but this is because we teach it, for they will not learn it from us nor accept it, which has never been done nor heard before. Therefore, what we suffer over this is a holy, blessed suffering, to which they themselves must also bear witness, and is now no longer a human, but a real diabolical persecution, that they say: it must and should not be called God's word, but keep its mouth shut, and not preach, unless it comes first, and falls to the pope.

The first step is to let the man and his larvae decide for themselves what they like.

100. Therefore let us suffer all that they can do against us all the more cheerfully and gladly, because we have the strong, certain comfort and great, glorious glory that our doctrine and cause is confirmed by their own mouth, and because we hear here the excellent, lovely promise that we shall be well rewarded in heaven, and that we shall rejoice and exult in this, as those who must not seek heaven but have it all ready; And they shall do no more with their persecution, than to encourage us the more, yea, to drive and chase us to heaven. Now see if these bad, short words cannot give as much courage as all the world can, and give more consolation and joy than all enemies can put on us; if only one does not run over them roughly, but grasps them a little with the heart and thinks about them.

101 This is what has been said about persecution, which is done by deed or fist, and is inflicted on body or goods, when Christians are violated, tortured, burned, hanged, and strangled, as is happening now and has always happened. Above this is another persecution, which is called blasphemy, shame or disgrace, concerning the honor and our name, which Christians must suffer above all others. Christ now goes on to speak about this.

V. 11 Blessed are ye, whom men shall revile and persecute for my sake, and shall speak all manner of evil against you, when they lie against you.

This is also a great and severe persecution, and (as I said) the real suffering of Christians, that they are blasphemed and reviled in the most bitter and poisonous way. For although other people must also suffer persecution, that one does them violence and injustice, one nevertheless lets it be enough that they keep their honor and good name. Therefore, this is not yet a truly Christian suffering. For here it is not enough that all torture and torment is inflicted on them, but in addition their name must be spat upon and blasphemed in the most shameful way, so that the world may still gloriously boast when it sees the Christians.

They have put to death the worst of the wicked, whom the earth could not bear, and have done the greatest and most pleasing service to God, as Christ says John 16:2, that no more shameful and disgraceful name has come upon the earth than that of a Christian, and no nation so bitterly hostile, and so attacked with evil and poisonous tongues, as the Christians.

This is now also proven by the dear gospel and its preachers with such blasphemous defilements, lies, deceptions, evil tricks and poisonous interpretations, that one should rather wish to suffer death many times over, than such poisonous, lost, evil arrows. Then the pope comes along and strikes us with his thunder and lightning, condemning us to hell as the worst children of the devil. Accordingly, his servants, bishops and princes, rage and rage with such horrible blasphemy and defilement that it may go through life and limb, that one must finally grow weary and could not bear it, because we do not have a stronger and more powerful consolation than all their malice and rage can be. Therefore, we let them rage and blaspheme, so that they may torment themselves, and have the burnt sorrow, with their poisonous, insatiable hatred and envy. But we are confident and of good cheer. If they are angry and rage a lot, we can laugh and be happy.

104. Therefore I say again: Whoever wants to be a Christian, let him expect that he has to suffer such persecution from poisonous, evil blasphemers, especially where they are not able to do anything with their fists, that he lets all the world sharpen their tongues at him, and aim, stab and cut out of him 1) and he, on the other hand, only defiantly despises all this, and in addition laughs in God's name, and lets them rage in their God's, the devil's, name, on the comfort and certainty (as [§ 94.] said) that our cause is right and God's own. Which they themselves must confirm, whether they condemn us, and yet say it is the truth. For our heart and conscience to be sure before God that we teach rightly. For we do not teach from our own head and our own reason or wisdom, nor do we teach from our own conscience.

1) Wittenberger: .them.

Seeking benefit, good, or honor from the world with it, but preaching and praising God's word and work alone.

105. whereas they, our enemies, boast of nothing but their own work, merit and holiness, and persecute us, who do not do this with them. For they do not persecute us as if we were adulterers, robbers, or thieves, etc. they can well suffer the most desperate peelers and boys among themselves, but they raise a clamor because we do not want to call their doctrine and life right, and only praise the gospel, Christ, faith, and right good works, and thus do not suffer for us, but everything for the sake of the Lord Christ. Therefore we want to sing it 2) also with them, and they shall not have such a hard head, we want to have even harder. For they shall still 3) briefly let the man remain, be it dear to them or sorry for them. 4)

V. 12. Be joyful and confident; you will be well rewarded in heaven.

These are sweet, comforting words, which should make our hearts cheerful and courageous against all kinds of persecution. Should we not esteem the dear Lord's word and comfort more highly and more than a powerless, insolent, stinking 5) maggot bag, or the shameful pope's anger, dread, banishment, cursing and thundering? if he poured out the basic soup and the whole hell of his disgrace and curse on us like a cloudburst; because I hear that my Lord Christ is so heartily pleased, and that he himself means me to be happy about it, and that he promises such a good reward for it, that the kingdom of heaven shall be mine, and all that Christ has together with all the saints and the whole of Christendom. Summa, such a treasure and comfort, for which I should not take all the world's goods, joy, and strings, though all the leaves and grass were vain tongues praising and glorifying me. 6) For here is not a Christian, not even an angel.

2) Wittenberger: we.

3) "yet" is missing in the Erlanger.

4) Wittenberger: Amen.

5) "unfläthigen, stinkenden" is missing in the Erlanger.

6) "who praised and glorified me" is missing in the Wittenberg; then follows: "since not one Christian," etc.

402 Erl. 43, 62-"4th Interpretation of the 5th, 6th, and 7th Chap. Matthaei. W. vn, [ss-sos. 403

but the Lord of all angels, to whom both they and all creatures must fall underfoot and worship. Therefore, they and all creatures, including leaves and grass, must sing and leap joyfully in praise of me.

(107) Now what are they that blaspheme and curse me, but vain nits and louse bellies (with leave), yea, much more vile than any can call them. What would it be if all creatures, leaves and grass in the forest, and sand on the sea, were vain tongues, and rebuked and destroyed them to the utmost, against this man's one word? For his voice sounds so brightly that heaven and earth must be filled with it and resound, and against it disappear the spittle-flecked, 1) hectoring pawing and coughing of his enemies.

Behold, we ought to learn and make use of such words as these, which are not in vain, but are spoken and written for our strength and comfort, that he, as our dear Master and faithful shepherd or bishop, may equip us to be skillful and unafraid to suffer when all plagues and calamities are laid upon us for his sake, both in word and deed, and to despise all that comes under our eyes, and to judge against our own reason and heart.

109. For where one indulges in the senses and feelings, it turns sour under the eyes, and it hurts that one should serve the world and everyone, help, advise, and do vain good, and receive nothing in return, but the worst, bitterest hatred, and cursed, poisonous tongues, so that where flesh and blood should rule here, it would soon say: If I am to have nothing else from it, then stick to the gospel and be a Christian, whoever wants to, and let the devil help the world from now on, if it does not want anything else. Therefore everyone now complains and cries that the gospel causes much strife, discord and disorder in the world, and that everything is worse now that it has arisen, than it was before, when things were quiet and there was no persecution, and people lived together as good friends and neighbors.

1) "spittelisch" formed from "hospital", hence: sickly. - "heischer" hoarse.

(110) But it is said, If thou wilt not have the gospel, nor be a Christian, go and be with the world, and no man shall persecute thee, and thou shalt be their friend. But if thou wilt have the gospel and Christ, then thou must take heed that evil befall thee, and that strife and persecution come whithersoever it cometh. Cause, for the devil will not suffer it to be otherwise, nor cease to stir up men against the gospel, that all the world may be inflamed against it; as now peasants, burghers, nobles, princes, and lords, who are hostile to the gospel out of sheer spite, and do not themselves know why.

111 Therefore, I say to answer such useless mouths and plaintiffs 2): It cannot and should not go well and be so. For how should things go well where the devil is in charge and is a mortal enemy of the gospel? And not without cause, for it does him harm in his kingdom that he feels it; and if he should let it go unhindered, it would soon be done and destroyed. But if he is to prevent and hinder it, then he must muster all his art and power, and raise up against it what is in his power. Therefore do not hope for peace and tranquility as long as Christ with his gospel is in the devil's kingdom. And woe to the prosperity and good estate which was before, and which they now desire and covet! For this is a sure sign that the devil reigns with all his might, and there is no Christ, as I, alas, fear that it will go like this again, and the gospel will come from us Germans all too soon, after which such cryers are now striving.

But we have this certainty that it is not our fault that things are going badly. For we would like everything to go right, and we have done our best with teaching, admonishing, pleading, begging and deflecting, even against the enemies; we offer them peace, 3) and everything we are supposed to do; we help and advise them with all our strength, even at our own risk and disadvantage; we suffer for it.

2) Wittenberger: Klüglingen. Latin:

3) Wittenberger: offer in srieden.

We are not yet able to do anything, except to persecute, blaspheme and revile us in the most horrible and poisonous way, and cannot stop until they cool themselves in our blood. Since there is no other way, we will finally let them go with their raging and blaspheming, and keep ourselves certain of the comfort we have heard here, that they will not succeed where they would like to, because they have thrown Christ down from heaven and made him a liar with everything he has said.

For so they persecuted the prophets that were before you.

(113) You are not alone (he says) to whom this happens. Look around you and count back all the holy fathers who have ever lived before you, and you will find that [it] happened to all of them. What special thing do you want? Shall he leave his way for your sake? For he hath suffered it in his dear fathers and prophets, that they were persecuted, and slain, and blasphemed of all men, and reproached, and made a mockery of the world. As it is seen in the Scriptures, that a common way and proverb was, when they would call a prophet, they called him a fool; as in [the] Historia Jehu, 2 Kings 9:11, they said of a prophet, "Why is this frenzied one come unto thee?" And Isaiah, Cap. 57:4, shows how they opened their mouths against him, and stuck out their tongues. But what have they done with it, but that now the dear prophets and saints have honor, praise and glory in all the world, and reign eternally with the Lord Christ, but that those are most shamefully stinking and cursed? You shall certainly be provided for (says Christ), that you may be rewarded as they are rewarded, more abundantly and more gloriously than you can believe or may desire. For you are in the same company and the same church.

(114) Behold, this is ever a fine and excellent preacher and a faithful Master, leaving nothing out to strengthen and to give comfort, both with his word and promise, and with the examples and testimonies of all the saints and the faithful.

of himself; with which all the angels in heaven and creatures agree. What more could we have and desire? Should we not, on such consolation, bear the wrath and defiance of the world and the devil for his sake? What would we do if we did not have a true divine cause, and such excellent sayings and promises, and yet had to suffer like other people who have no comfort? For it cannot come to pass in the world that one may suffer nothing, and must, as 110] said, go evil for the sake of the gospel, so that the pious may be proved thereby and promoted to their promised comfort, joy and blessedness, but the wicked and despisers or enemies of the gospel may be punished and condemned.

(115) Christ has thus far prepared and prepared his Christians to live and suffer for themselves in the world, and especially those who are to hold public office in Christendom. However, even without this, every Christian, as for himself, should always be ready to stand where it is necessary, to confess his Lord and to represent his faith, and always armed against the world, devils, mobs, and whatever he is able to muster. Now he continues, and will also instruct them in the ministry and teach them how they should conduct it; after that he also puts into their mouths what and how they should preach. For according to these things a Christian is quite perfect, if he lives rightly for his own person, and suffers all manner of things for it, after which he also leads and carries on his ministry rightly, that he may serve and help others. Thus he speaks:

V. 13. You are the salt of the earth. Now that salt has become dull, wherewith shall it be salted? There is no use henceforth but to pour it out, and let men tread it down.

(116) With the word salt he shows (as said) what their office is to be. For salt is not salt by itself, nor can it salt itself, but this is its custom, that meat, and what it is needed for in the kitchen, should be salted with it, so that it has its flavor, remains fresh and does not rot. So, says he, you are also salt, not that which is put into the kitchen.

1) "a" is missing in the Erlanger.

but to salt such flesh as is called the whole world. This is a glorious office and a great honor, that God calls them his salt, and sets them to salt all that is on earth. But such a man must be willing, as he has taught until now, to be poor, miserable, meager, 1) meek, etc. and to suffer all kinds of persecution, shame and blasphemy. Where this is not the case, there will never be a preacher who is willing to salt, but remains a stupid salt that is of no use anywhere.

117 For there is much laid up, and too highly overcharged, that the poor fishermen, or

otherwise a poor despised man, shall be called a salt of the earth before God, and refrain from attacking and salting everything that is human and on earth. Reason and nature do not tolerate it, because they get tired of it and cannot bear it, that they should only have shame, disgrace and misfortune from it, and would soon say: "Salt the devil the world in my place. Therefore, our holy fathers, bishops, monks and hermits have wisely done so far, that they have been idle in preaching, and have waited for other things, or have separated themselves from people, because they have seen that it costs too much to sit in vain driving body, goods and honors, and thought, we want to command it to others, and meanwhile crawl into corners, and serve God with good days. That is why it is difficult to be an apostle or a preacher, and to carry out such an office; indeed, it is impossible to judge according to flesh and blood. But there must be such people who gladly do it for the sake of God and the Lord Christ, who does not want to force anyone to do it, nor do he force anyone with commandments. For the Christian state is such a state, which demands only willing hearts; whoever does not have a heartfelt desire for it, will probably stay away from it.

118 But our defiance is when things go badly, the world and the devil look at us sourly, and are as wicked as they will, that he says to us, "You are the salt of the earth." Where the wordD shines into the heart, so that it can rely on it, and boast without doubt that he is God's

1) Wittenberger and Erlanger: "thirsty".

2) Wittenberger: mags.

3) Wittenberger: "these words.... shine".

Salt be: let him who will not laugh be angry and wicked. I can and may defy and insist on his one word more than they on all their might, swords and guns. Because he recognizes me and testifies to it through his word, all the angels in heaven, the sun and the moon and all creatures must say yes to it and stand with us against the world and the devil. And even if this were not the case, we would still have enough in the one word that he calls and baptizes us in this way. Let them leave that alone, and we will stand before them in honor, as long as Christ and his word remain.

Now, how the salting is to be done is easy to understand, namely, that one should appear and say: Everything that is born and lives on earth is no good, rotten and corrupt in the sight of God. For since he says plainly that they are to be salt of the earth, that is, above all that is in the world, it must follow that everything that is in the world, and is called flesh or man, must be punished and made to perish, so that all the world's holiness, wisdom, and godliness, invented by themselves apart from God's word, may be condemned as being of the devil, and belong to the abyss of hell, where it does not adhere to Christ alone.

This is an unkind sermon, which makes us unpleasant to the world, and deserves to be made enemies of, and to be smitten about the mouth. For the world could well bear it if one preached rightly about Christ and all the articles of faith, but if one wants to attack it, and salt it with the fact that its wisdom and holiness should count for nothing, even that it is blind and condemned, it cannot and will not suffer that, and blames the preachers, who can do nothing but scold and bite; and must be called to have stirred up the world and made strife, to have defiled spiritual estates and good works.

But how can we do it? If salt is to be used, it must be biting. And though they reproach us with biting, we know that it is so, and that Christ has commanded it, and that he wills the salt to be sharp and to bite confidently, as we shall hear. As St. Paul also does everywhere; punishes the entire

4) Erlanger: "both".

world and reproves everything it lives and does, where there is no faith in Christ; and Christ Joh. 16, 8. says, "when the Holy Spirit comes, he shall reprove the world" etc., that is, he is to attack everything he finds in the world, making no distinction or difference, nor reprove some, and praise some, or punish thieves and scoundrels alone; but to take everything 1) in one heap, one with the other, be it great, small, pious, wise, holy, or as he pleases; summa, everything that is not Christ. For the Holy Spirit must not come nor send preachers into the world to show and punish outward gross sin, adultery, murder etc., if it knows and can punish itself, but which it considers most delicious, and since it is best, to be pious and holy and serve God with it.

(122) Therefore it is not true that some are now wise and pretend that it is enough for a preacher to tell everyone what is right, and that he may well preach the gospel, but that one must not touch the pope, bishops, princes, and other estates or persons, because of which much strife and strife arises. But it is said: If you want to preach the gospel and help the people, you must also be sharp and rub salt into the wounds, that is, point out the contradiction, and punish where it does not go right, as now masses, monasticism, indulgences etc. and everything that is attached to them and holds them up, so that such trouble may be cleared out of the way and no one may be deceived by it. Therefore, one must always stop here with salts, so that one can defend oneself and not leave room for it to arise again or to break down secretly. As must happen where the salt ministry does not always continue, and has so far happened in Christendom, that vain human doctrine has ruled and corrupted everything; which would have remained, if the salt had remained. For the right doctrine would not have been lacking, because by the grace of God the Scripture, Gospel, Sacrament, and preaching chair have remained in the church, if only the bishops and preachers had practiced this, and had let it go in practice and custom to salt what is of the old Adam.

1) The second "all" is missing in the Jena.

(123) Therefore Christ here exhorts and warns the disciples so diligently that they watch, and always let such salting go on the way, saying, "If the salt becomes dull, wherewith shall one salt anything?" Dumb salt means that has lost its teeth and sharpness, and no longer seasons nor bites; This is when the ministry in Christendom ceases to punish people, and does not show them their misery and inability, nor does it maintain its own repentance and knowledge, letting them go on as if they were pious and right, and thus letting their own holiness and self-chosen worship fall away, until the pure doctrine of faith is again completely lost and Christ is lost and so completely corrupted that it is no longer possible to help or advise.

124. He has seen this and prophesied the future fate, yes, the damage and ruin of Christianity, that such salting or penal office would be left lying around, and that all kinds of sores and sects would arise, each one throwing out his own garbage as a right doctrine and worship, and yet is nothing else but a worldly, carnal thing, grown out of our head and reason, so that we tickle ourselves, and thus even rot in it as vain wild, stinking, corrupt flesh, in which salting and punishment is lost.

125 From this you see how much and how great is the importance of this piece, that Christ does not place it here in vain before all others, and commands it so diligently. For without it, Christianity cannot stand, and Christ cannot remain, no right mind nor life can flourish, that indeed there is no greater harm and ruin to Christianity than where the salt, with which all other things must be seasoned and salted, becomes dull. And yet it has happened so soon. For it is such a poison, which sweetly enters, and gently does to the old Adam. For he must not stand so in danger, risking life and limb, nor suffer persecution, shame and blasphemy.

Therefore, our bishops and clergy are the wisest people on earth in this case (although they are not so good that they are called stupid salt, but the devil even siud, as they do not hold any episcopal office,

They preach that they are without a driver, that they have money and goods, and honor and power enough. For whoever shall reproach all the world, emperors, kings, princes, wise men, scholars, and say that their nature is condemned before God, he must be put to death. But if I heuchele them and let their thing also be right, then I remain undefeated, keep favor and honor etc., make me meanwhile a fine thought, I want to preach nevertheless probably the gospel beside it. But I am nevertheless a stupid salt. For with this I leave the people stuck in their own old delusion and carnal mind, so that they go to the devil, and I in front.

So this office has much challenge and obstacle everywhere, both on the left and on the right, that one is silent, either for fear of driving, harm and persecution, or for the sake of honor, good and enjoyment. Without this, we are weak, lazy, and weary, so that we are easily carried away and grow weary when we see that it will not go away as we would like it to, and it looks as if it were in vain, and people despise it, indeed, only 1) become angrier the more one wants to punish them.

(128) Therefore we must be prepared against it, and look only to Christ's command, who lays out such a ministry for us, and wills that we open our mouths freshly, and punish what is to be punished; not considering our fare, adversity, or profit and enjoyment, nor other people's malice and contempt, and comfort ourselves that he makes us his salt, and wills to preserve us thereby. And let us be confidently salted, and not be troubled or dismayed, if the world will not suffer it, and persecute us for it, or despair, though we think we can do nothing. For what he calls us to do, we shall put up with and be content with, and let him be commanded what and how much he will accomplish through us. If the people do not want to hear it or accept it, we are nevertheless salt and have accomplished our task. So then we can stand before God's judgment with all honor and joy, and answer for it, that we have done it every-

1) Erlanger: "nu".

when faithfully said, and put nothing under the bench, that they have no excuse, as if they did not know better, and was not told to them.

But those who are frightened and keep silent for the sake of favor, honor and good etc. will also have to hear them say at the last day, "He was our preacher and did not tell us. And they shall not be excused, if they will say, Lord, they have not heard. For Christ shall say, Knowest thou not that I commanded thee to salt, and didst warn so diligently; shouldest thou not fear my word more than they? Such shall nns also cheaply frighten.' For here thou hearest the sentence which he pronounces on such foolish salt, saying:

It is good for nothing henceforth, except to be poured out and let people trample it.

(130) This much is said: They shall not fare well here on earth, but shall be badly rejected by Christ, as they no longer belong to him, and shall never be his preachers, nor belong to Christendom, and are already cast out and deprived of all fellowship in heaven, and with all the saints, though they retain the name, and are esteemed by men as the best preachers and holiest people on earth. How it went in the papacy at the time when it was most pious and holy (not, as now, a secular empire and spiritual devil's regiment), when the pope himself preached, and ruled the church, and had ordered all things in the finest way, and set them in order and rule (as St. Gregory and others before him did). Gregory and others before and after him), which all the world considered the finest rule and holiest worship that could be done on earth, and yet all has been of no use.

For there was no salt at all by which one should have kept and punished such according to God's word, as our own self-invented holiness, but all the world praised and confirmed it, and thus strengthened our own presumption and false confidence in it, as in the right blessed life and holy estate. As St. Gregory himself praises and exalts, that even if he is a holy man, he is a holy man.

The first man who has been a heretic (as I consider him) has done no good with his teaching, and yet has such a beautiful appearance that no one can blame him, that if they could now bring it back into the state and reform it, no one would be allowed to preach a word against it, or would have to be called the worst heretic that ever was.

Now this is one part of the warning, that he says: if the salt becomes stupid, it is no longer useful. The other is even more terrible, when he pronounces judgment on it, that one should let people walk over it and trample it underfoot. When the right salt, that is, the right interpretation of Scripture, is gone, by which all the world is to be punished, and nothing but the one faith in Christ alone is to be accepted, then all is finished, and nothing more helps what is otherwise taught or punished. For both doctrine and life, master and disciple, are already rejected and condemned before God.

In sum, if this article of Christ is not enforced, that we may be justified and saved through him alone, and hold all things condemned apart from him, then there is no longer any resistance and endurance, indeed, no measure nor cessation of all heresy and error, of all sects and cults, since everyone conceives and casts out something special, something of his own. As has happened to us so far under the pope, since no monk has dreamed anything, it has had to come to the pulpit, and a special service has had to be made of it, and no lies have been so shameful, which one has not accepted, who has only been allowed to bring it to the preaching chair; until [it] has finally come to such a point that one has not only lost Christ, but God as well, and they themselves almost no longer believe any article of faith, that I may say: that in a hundred years there have been few popes who have believed one article. As it is also now in German lands with those, since the article of Christ has perished, and for it one Rotteri and error have gone out over the other: since one denies the sacrament, the other the baptism and other articles, and many have already 1) become even epicuric, who believe nothing everywhere; just as

1) Wittenberg and Erlanger: beautiful.

the popes with their cardinals at Rome, and thus finally become nothing but cows and pigs, and also thus die.

For this reason I have always exhorted, as Christ does here, that the salt may remain salt and not become dull, that is, that the main article of faith may be rightly practiced. For where this ceases, not a single thing can remain right, and all is lost, neither faith nor understanding, so that no one can teach or 2) counsel rightly. Summa, everyone must let it run over him with feet, that is (as said), no Bachant nor donkey is so rough, if he may only bring up something new, then everyone runs to, and believes it. For what have the shameful monks not been allowed to preach insolently until now, and to persuade the people with their brotherhoods, little prayers, rosaries, yes, with their shameful caps, so they put on the dead, and thereby promised heaven? What is this but to let every man trample under his feet, and to be subject to every preacher of lies? This makes that the devil has become powerful in the heart and has even corrupted it with his rotten, damnable teachings and superstitions, so that Christ is gone and his knowledge is lost.

For if I keep that Christ alone is my righteousness and holiness, then no monk will ever persuade me nor seduce me by his cap, rosaries, such or other works and humanity. For by faith I am a judge over all ranks and creatures, if one thinks 3) that I can condemn everything that wants to show me something else that is to be valid before God. If, however, I let go of the treasure and point to other ways of becoming pious, reconciling with God and atoning for sin, then I am already ready for all kinds of snares and nets of the devil, and let myself be led as he wills; so here and there comes one who preaches to me: If you want to become pious and serve God, wear a cap, pray so many rosaries every day, light so many little lights at St. Anne's; then I will fall down like a blind man and everyone will see me.

2) Wittenberger: or.

3) Jenaer: erdenkt.

4) In the old editions: "nets".

I am a fool and a prisoner, and I do everything I am called, so much so that I cannot resist even the slightest error.

(136) Behold, the Lord Christ Himself has said this before, and warned that it would be so; yet no one has been able to beware of it. And if we are not careful now, and see to it that we keep the article, it will happen to us that we will not keep any article right and pure, nor will we cease to err and make mischief, until it is all over, and neither preaching nor teaching will help any more, but cows and swine will remain, as it unfortunately already happens among the great multitude, to the reward of our contempt and ingratitude for the gospel.

V. 14. 15. You are the light of the world. The city that is on a mountain may not be hidden. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but upon a candlestick, and it shall shine unto all that are in the house.

137 This is the other part of the ministry which he gives to the dear apostles: that they should be called and be a "light of the world," namely, to instruct and guide souls to eternal life. That he might cast the whole world among the apostles, that it should and must be enlightened by them, and that he might conceal that it is all darkness and blindness with all that it is able. For if she had no light to enlighten her (as she thinks), what would the apostle have to do with it? Now see if this is not a high and excellent office, and an honor above all honor, that all that is in the world, that is, kings, princes, lords, scholars, wise men, saints, must sit down, and let the apostles appear, and reprove and condemn all their wisdom, holiness, etc. as not knowing what they teach or live, nor how they are with God.

But here comes Master Pabst with his bishop larvae, who want to be called the governors of Christ and the apostles, who are allowed to master Christ's word, and to put down the apostles when they slobber: it is not enough that the apostles have preached and the Holy Spirit has shone through them; but one must take the holy fathers, councils and popes' sentences as a basis.

We are to know that Christ is not such a juggler who speaks in half words, but because he is called a light of the world, their teaching alone must be valid and sufficient for all the world. But we are to know that Christ is not such a juggler who speaks with half words, but because he calls them a light of the world, their teaching alone must be valid and sufficient to enlighten all the world, so that there is no need of any other light; indeed, what is apart from their teaching remains darkness. Even if they shine with their lanterns for a long time, they are still nothing, but only laws invented by men, of external things, so that everyone understands without that and could well see and make for himself that they should not be called Lux Mundi but Lex Dei, as they are subject to govern God himself and his Christianity with their laws, just as if they were much better than the apostles. So they dim the light of the apostles with their blind doctrine, so that they cannot rightly punish nor instruct a conscience, as can be seen in all the books of the Pope and all the high schools, and so they may be called neither salt nor light. For when they do their best, they punish the coarse, outward parts, which have already been punished by worldly law and the light of 1) reason. But the right knots and main parts, as, unbelief, false holiness, they never become aware of, yes, they are even stuck inside over their ears. Therefore their doctrine is 2) a vain foolish thing, in addition darkness and blindness, cannot see higher, salt nor shine, than how one should eat meat or fish, dress and behave like this or otherwise.

139) Therefore it is and remains the apostles' office alone to punish the right inward vices, and in turn to heal, comfort, and raise up all poor afflicted consciences, and to leave no one unpunished in evil, nor uninstructed and uneducated 3) to good. For this reason Christ installs them here and ordains them as preachers, so that they alone are heard and must be heard, and not allow any other spirits of the wicked, whom the devil also introduces next to them, who also want to be salt and light.

1) "the" is missing in the Erlanger.

2) Instead of: "their teaching" the Erlanger has: "it".

3) Wittenberger: "instructed and erected. Jenaer: ununterweiset und aufgerichtet", which is to be understood in such a way that the prefix "un" is also to be drawn to the second word.

even Christ himself, and cry out that there is nothing in the doctrine of faith, that we must come up higher, and attack ourselves differently, that we may suffer and be crucified. Which, if you look at it everywhere, is nothing, because taught by our own doing, and nowhere come to show unbelief, and punish the right hopeful vices, which are in the same doctrine, so that they raise themselves up to be salt and light; do not let it remain with the calling and command, which he gives here to the apostles, and says: Ye shall be the light; whereupon we alone do, that we may be sure of it, and may boast that Christ hath ordained us unto it, and hath marked us, that we should and must salt and shine, as of our office and divine command.

140 For this also is necessary, that Christ will not have such a ministry secretly, or in one place, but publicly, throughout the whole world. And shows them sufficiently what they have to expect from the world, when he says: "The city that lies on a mountain may not be hidden. Neither do men kindle a light, and put it under a bushel" etc. This is what is said: He who is to be a light, let him only watch, and not creep into corners, but step freely into the square, and be unafraid. For so it is, as it was said before, that those who are called to be apostles and to shine do not like to come forward, to be deterred by fear, danger, persecution, or to be overheard by friendship, favor, honor and good, so that they do not come forward and open their mouths, but creep to corners, stop behind the mountain, and draw in their pipes.

141) As now our clergymen who sit in office. And if they are commanded to preside over Christendom, and to shine publicly with their doctrine,-they put it under the bank, nay, have become much more angry, that they are the very ones who persecute the word, and want to extinguish the light, incite emperors, kings, with all the world only against it; sit nevertheless in the house, and want to rule the church alone, have the preaching chair, baptism, sacrament, and all that belongs to the profession and office. But this is the prophecy, as proclaimed by the apostles, that shepherds

should become wolves, and the end-Christ should sit down in the temple of God, and rise above all that is called God and worship [2 Thess. 2, 4].

On the other hand, the other spirits of the mob, who have no profession and would like to stay at home in a corner, want to penetrate everywhere and shine alone, so that everyone will hear them and look to them. But it is nothing, except that they seek their own honor with it, and preach as long as people are attached to them, and may not worry about any danger. But if they were to stand like true preachers, as they are charged with the office, and always shine in public, not letting any wind or weather frighten them or keep them silent or dampen them, they would soon lose their way and no one would find them at home. So it must go with the dear preaching ministry on both ropes, that either those leave it who should lead it, or those want to lead it who are not commanded to do so, and so it will never be done right, unless there are such people as Christ depicts here and has prepared beforehand [Matth. 5, 3. ff].

143. So now he will say: If you want to be my preachers, then you must truly be prepared to stand freely in public on the square, and stand before the world as on a high mountain, that you confidently let yourselves be looked at and heard in public, that you neither conceal nor put under the bench what you are to preach, that you neither keep silent nor speak to anyone in love: But as ye are the light, shine also openly, without respect of honor or dishonor, riches or poverty, hatred or favor, death or life, knowing that ye serve me, who have set you for a light. These then would be righteous people, who do not allow themselves to be bent, neither to the right nor to the 1) left side; as Psalm 45:7, 8. says of the preaching office: The scepter of your kingdom is a straight scepter. You love righteousness, and hate ungodly beings etc.

This is the virtue and praise of the gospel and its preachers. For otherwise all other doctrines have none of the driving, all preach what one likes to hear and the ver-.

1) "zur" is missing in the Wittenberg and the Erlanger.

Those who are in accordance with reason must not fear that they will be persecuted. But this doctrine is everywhere put to the test, because it wants to appear and 'let nothing be the light and doctrine of the world; so it tries all kinds of things to dim such light and drive us into a corner, or to throw us under a bushel, so that we leave our doctrine, or revoke it, and let it be bent and interpreted as they would like. But we will not be driven by our position, but will remain a city on the hill, and the light on the lampstand in the house. For he who made us light will keep us light; therefore he now decides:

V. 16 So let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

Behold, how diligently does he exhort, which he should not do, if it were not for great trouble and distress. And this much is said: They will darken your light, and not want to suffer; but only be bold and confident against it, that you receive only so much, that you do not crawl under the bushel, and carry out your ministry honestly, so I will see that it is not so dampened. For this is certain, because a Christian preacher holds to it and abides by it, and can despise the reviling and persecuting of the world, so the ministry must also abide, and the gospel cannot fall, because those who hold to it still stand and abide. As then some must always remain until the last day.

But that he says, "That men may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven," is spoken in the manner of St. Matthew, who thus speaks of works. For he, together with the other two evangelists, Marco and Luke, does not put his gospel so high and much on the high article of Christ, as St. John and Paul. Therefore they speak and exhort much about good works. How then it should be in Christianity that both are practiced, but each in its essence and dignity; that one first and most highly leads the faith in 1) Christ, after that also

1) Erlanger: "and", instead of: "an".

the works. Because the evangelist John through and through has driven the main article in the most powerful way, and is therefore considered the highest and most distinguished evangelist, St. Matthew, Marcus and Lucas have also taken the other piece before them and have driven it strongly, so that it would not be forgotten. So that they are better in this piece than John, and he in turn in that one.

(147) But thou must not regard the sayings and doctrine of works as separating faith from them, as they, our blind teachers, stumble; but always draw them into faith, that they may be incorporated therein, and go out of faith, and into faith, and be praised and approved for the same; as I have often taught otherwise. So also here, when he says, "That they may see your good works," you must not regard it as merely, or as merely minor works, 2) as such faithless works (as our clergymen's good works have been hitherto), but of such works as faith does, and cannot be done without or apart from faith. For this is what he here calls good works, when one practices, drives, and confesses the doctrine of Christ and faith, and suffers for it. For he speaks of such works, that one may shine. But "shining" is the right faith or teaching ministry, so that we also help people to believe.

For this reason, the highest and best works are those from which it must follow, as he says here, that the heavenly Father is honored and praised. For this doctrine or sermon takes from us all the glory of holiness, and says that there is nothing good in us of which we can boast. And again it instructs the conscience how it should behave toward God, shows it God's grace and mercy, and the whole of Christ. This means that God is rightly revealed and praised, which is also the right sacrifice and worship. These works should be the first and foremost, after which life also follows outwardly toward the neighbor, which are called works of love, which also shine,

2) The words: "or as mere minor works" are missing in the Wittenberg and Erlangen.

but no further, for provided they are kindled and driven by faith.

You can conclude for yourself that St. Matthew is not to be understood here in terms of the common works that each one should do toward the other out of love, which he speaks of in Matt. 25:35 ff, but mostly in terms of the right Christian work of teaching righteousness, practicing the faith, and teaching, strengthening, and maintaining it, so that we can testify that we are righteous Christians. For the others are not so sure, because even false Christians can adorn and cover themselves with great and beautiful works of love. But to teach and confess Christ rightly is not possible without faith. As St. Paul says in 1 Cor. 12:3: "No one can call Jesus Lord unless by the Holy Spirit." For no false Christian, nor the spirit of the mob, can understand this doctrine, how much less will he preach and confess it rightly, even if he takes the words and repeats them, but does not stay with them or leave them pure! He always preaches in such a way that one grasps that he is not right; yet he smears his slobber on it, thereby taking away Christ's honor and adding it to himself.

150 Therefore this alone is the most certain work of a true Christian, when he so praises and preaches Christ that people learn how they are nothing and Christ is everything. Summa, it is such a work, which is not done for one or two, because it remains hidden, as other works, but shines publicly before the whole world and lets itself be seen, and for this reason alone it is persecuted. (For it can still well suffer other works.) Therefore it is actually called such a work, by which our Father is recognized and praised. The other lesser works cannot come into it; they alone remain among men, and belong to the other table of the ten commandments. These, however, are in the first three high commandments, which concern God's honor, name, and word, and for this purpose must be well proven and purified through persecution and suffering, so that they endure; for this purpose they must be defiled before the world, so that they remain pure from their own honor and presumption, and be praised before God all the more, as in them His honor and praise are touched. Therefore they stand

They are also the most firm, so that God will stand over them all the stronger and lead them through against the world's raging and persecution. Therefore we should also let them go far ahead, as the highest, then the others also, against the people among each other, so that both go right, that one first always teaches and practices the faith, and then also lives according to it, and thus everything we do goes in and from the faith; as I have always taught.

V.17. Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have not come to abolish, but to fulfill.

151 Since the Lord Christ has laid down and earnestly commanded the apostles in their ministry, he now goes on, and himself sets both to salt and to shine, as an example to them, that they may know what they ought to preach; and attacks both the doctrine and life of the Jews, false delusion and work, to punish and to amend. Although, as I said, he does not teach the high main doctrine of faith here, but first starts from the bottom, and explains and emphasizes the law, which was quite darkened and perverted by their Pharisees and scribes. For this is also a necessary thing, that the doctrine of God's commandments should be purified and brought into order.

It is a sharp and unpleasant salt that he accuses and condemns such people as those who neither teach nor live rightly, and does not allow anything to be right or good for them, who were the very best and holiest, who taught God's commandment daily and practiced the holy service of God, so that no one could punish them. Gives them cause to confidently cry out against him and accuse him as one who wants to abolish the law and make it null and void, which God has commanded etc. Just as the pope with his multitude cries out against us and reproaches heretics who forbid good works. So he was well aware that he would be blamed for this and that his preaching would be interpreted in this way. Therefore he comes first with a preface and condition that it is not his opinion to dissolve the law, but that he is there to teach it rightly and to confirm it against those who weaken it with their teaching.

For it was necessary for them to have so many prophets and holy fathers, for the sake of the high fame they had and the excellent appearance they could make and show off, that they alone were God's people, that whoever dared to punish them had to hear from the beginning: Who are you, that you alone should be wise, and rebuke everyone, as if our fathers and we all had erred, who have and preach God's law? (As now all the world also cries out against us, saying that we condemn the holy fathers and the whole church, which cannot err because it is governed by the Holy Spirit. etc.) Because you reprove our doctrine and life, it is a sign that you condemn both law and prophets, fathers and the whole people.

154 Christ now answers, "No, I will not dissolve the law or the prophets, but I will keep and press harder and more diligently than you. Yes, so 1) hard, that before heaven and earth pass away, before I let one letter or the smallest tittle pass away, or be written in vain. Yes, I want to say even more: that whoever despises the smallest commandment, or teaches otherwise, shall be rejected in the kingdom of heaven for the sake of the least of these, even if he holds fast all the others. Therefore we are of one mind in the matter that Moses and the prophets are to be taught stiffly and firmly, and kept above them; but because we both ought and want to teach the law (as also now both, the pope and the other clergy and we, refer to one Scripture, boast of one gospel and God's word at the same time), it is necessary to be sure which part rightly guides and interprets the Scripture or God's law, or not? The quarrel arises over this. Here I must salt and punish. For the Jews with their glosses have perverted and corrupted the law; so I have come to set it right again. How we have had to attack the teaching of the Pabst, who has corrupted the Scriptures with their stink and filth.

(155) Now he does not deny 2) that they are God's people, the law, fathers and pro-.

1) Wittenberger: "so" instead of "yes, so".

2) "nun" is missing in the Jena.

phets, just as we do not deny nor condemn the Christians, baptism, gospel, who have been under the pope, but say: it is the right baptism, gospel etc. that we have. But there we fight to accept what they have smeared on it, and let it be right as they interpret and pervert it, and have defiled the pure doctrine with their nasty and maddening, yes, devilish addition of their caps, plates, indulgences, purgatory, sacrificial masses etc. There we must salt and work to sweep and clean such stink. So it is that they are the very ones who dissolve and destroy the law and the Scriptures, who adorn themselves with the beautiful name of the Scriptures, the Gospel, the Christian church etc., and carry their maggots into it under the shear, and have so corrupted it that it has become of no use; crying out for it above us: One attacks the Christian church, holy fathers, good works etc.

He says therefore, "I have not come to abolish the law, but to fulfill it"; that is, I do not want to bring another or a new law, but to take the very Scripture which you have and to strike it out correctly, and to act in such a way that you may know how to keep it. For the gospel or Christ's preaching does not bring a new doctrine that lays down or changes the law, but just that (as St. Paul says [Rom. 1:2]) which was promised beforehand in the Scriptures and through the prophets. So we take from the 4) ours just the Scripture, baptism, sacrament etc. which they have, not wanting to add anything new or better. But we do this only so that the same may be preached and practiced correctly, and that what does not rhyme with it may be removed.

St. Augustine interprets the word "fulfill" in two ways: First, that the law is fulfilled when one does what is lacking in it. Secondly, when one fulfills it with works and with life. But the first gloss is not right. For the law is so rich and perfect in itself that nothing must be added to it. For even the apostles themselves must prove the gospel and preaching of Christ from the Old Testament. Therefore no one, not even Christ himself, can prove the

3) Erlanger: "so".

4) "den" is missing in the Erlanger.

Law does not improve. For what higher thing can one do or teach, since the first commandment teaches: "You shall love God with all your heart" etc.? [He does this by giving his grace and spirit over the law and the teaching, so that one may do and fulfill what the law demands; but this does not mean doing anything for the law. So he does not speak of this here, but of the fulfillment that is done with teaching. Just as he means "to redeem," not to do against the law with works, but to break off from the law with teaching.

158 Therefore it is not otherwise said, but as St. Paul says Rom. 3, 31: "Do we then abolish the law by faith? Let this be far from us; but let us establish the law," namely, that he will not bring any other doctrine than that the former should no longer apply, but will preach and expunge the same properly, showing the right core and understanding, so that they may learn what the law is and wants, contrary to the Pharisees' glosses, which they have carried in and preached only the shells or husks of it. Just as we may say to our papists, "We do not want to abolish your gospel or preach it differently, but we want to purify and polish it as a mirror that has been darkened and corrupted by your filth, so that no more than the name of the gospel remains, but no one can see anything in it. As the Jewish teachers kept the text of the law, but corrupted it with their addition, so that no right understanding nor custom could remain.

V. 18 For I say unto you: Truly, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or tittle of the law will pass away until all is done.

That is, I want everything to be taught and held purely and completely, and not the slightest thing to be done about it. So that he shows that he has found it much different, namely, that both doctrine and life have not gone right anywhere. Therefore he must take both before him and salt them so that they become pure. In the same way we must teach, so that we do not let one letter of the Gospel be broken off, but say: Everything must be taught, believed and kept pure. So he conditions himself to preach a sharp sermon,

and not leave the blame on him for wanting to dissolve the law, but strike at them from themselves and prove how they have weakened and dissolved the law and smeared their glosses on it. Just as our papists did with the Gospel and the Scriptures, since they completely concealed the highest article, the righteousness of faith through Christ. They have also taken one form of the sacrament and hidden the words of the sacrament; indeed, they have done so crudely that they have preached these very commandments, as Christ does here, not for necessary commandments, but for good advice, directly against these words and condition, that before heaven and earth must pass away, one of the very least things is not kept. Thereupon he immediately passes a serious sentence against such preachers, as follows:

V. 19: Whoever therefore abolishes one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven. But he that doeth and teacheth them shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

(160) I will be so firm about it (says he) that not only will I not dissolve any of them, but whoever is a preacher and picks up the least piece or lets it go, he shall know that he is not my preacher, but shall be condemned and cast out of the kingdom of heaven. For that he says, "He shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven," is nothing else than that he shall not be in the kingdom of heaven, but as he thinks it small, that he despiseth the commandment of God, so shall he also be despised and cast out.

161 All preachers of the gospel must also be prepared to boast of this before all the world, just as we can defy our adversaries if they show us a saying or article of Scripture which we annul or do not preach correctly. For they themselves had to testify at the Diet of Augsburg that our confession is the true Scripture and not contrary to any article of faith. But they cry out about this alone, that we do not also keep their thing, which the conciliation and popes have set, and therefore shall be damned, that we do not like their nasty maggots and rotten humanity.

(162) Although we have always offered ourselves, and could still keep everything with them, if they would let us have the freedom and distinction that it is not necessary for salvation, nor contrary to the gospel, whether we let it stand, but keep it to please them, as another free, unnecessary thing, which gives us nothing, nor takes anything from us, as one runs to please one at carnival in mummery. But they do not want to concede this; so we cannot do otherwise, nor let Christ our Savior (who has shown and given us more goodness through his holy suffering and death than the pope, Franciscus, Dominic, nor any saint) go for the sake of their rotten thing, which can neither benefit nor help anyone. If they will let us, then we will indeed 1) keep everything with them that they impose on us, and better than they themselves.

163. But because they are not satisfied with this, but want to force us to accept Christ and the pure doctrine, which they themselves cannot reprove, we again despise them as condemned and rejected by Christ, both with their doctrine and life, as those who do not dissolve God's word or commandment, but even annul it, so that they teach impudently: It is not necessary to love God with all one's heart; item, that one honors one's parents, if someone wants to go into a monastery, or give his property to the church, so that he may help his parents; so also one may well leave his bride and go into a monastery. Summa, everything that the Lord demands here according to God's commandment, they have made unnecessary, as if it were only good advice and works of excess etc.

Therefore, you see what fine Christian teachers and holy people they are, who are allowed to abrogate and nullify all of God's commandments without fear, and want to be unpunished for it, and are allowed to urge us, yes, with force and violence, to think that their humanity is necessary, and, if we do not accept and praise it, to punish us with cruelty.

1) In the Wittenberg edition: "zwarten", which Walch has correctly resolved with "though". In the Jena and Erlangen editions, "zuwarten", which is not in keeping with the context. The form "zwarten" is also found in the old editions in the interpretation of the fifth petition of the Holy Father-Unsers, Also the Latin translation agrees with our reading.

The first thing you have to do is to attack the lawful edicts and all despotism. Now calculate for yourself what Christ will say about this, because he speaks such a strict judgment here that he shall have no part in his kingdom who dissolves the very least commandment, even though he teaches the others all exactly and keeps them. Where do you think that 2) they belong, but in the fires of hell, where they are deepest? For there has never come on earth such a shameful people, who have so brazenly acted on God's word, which they know is right, and yet want to be praised as Christian leaders. Therefore beware of them, and let no one be afraid of their condemnation. Persecuting and raving. For here we have the consolation that those who teach God's word purely and faithfully, or keep it, shall be great with Christ in the kingdom of heaven, even though that multitude curses them far below hell.

(165) But I leave undecided how the law must be fulfilled, that not a letter nor a tittle of it perish, etc. when we teach that no man can fail to fulfill it. For I have said that Christ here speaks primarily not of life, but of doctrine; and does not deal with the high main article, which he himself is and gives to us, namely, that we cannot be justified nor saved by the doctrine of the law, but only come to the knowledge of ourselves by it, as we are not able to fulfill one tittle rightly by our own strength. And even though we do as much as we can after becoming Christians through baptism and faith, we can never stand before God through it, but must always grovel to Christ, who has fulfilled everything in the purest and most perfect way, and gives Himself to us with His fulfillment, so that we stand before God through Him, and the law cannot guilt or condemn us. So it is true that everything must be done and fulfilled down to the smallest tittle; but only through this one man, of which enough has been said elsewhere.

V. 20 For I say unto you, Except your righteousness be better than that of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.

2) Wittenberg and Erlangen: da.

Here thou seest how he assaults, and speaketh not generally against lesser men, but against the very best of all the people, which were the very core and the very paragon, and shone before others as the sun, that there was no more honourable estate, nor more honourable name among the people, than that of the Pharisees and scribes; and he that would call a holy man, must call a Pharisee, as we have called a Carthusian or a hermit. As the disciples of Christ themselves doubtless held, that no greater holiness was to be found than among these, and would have thought nothing less than to attack these people. Nor may he call them by name, and reprove not some persons among them, but the whole class; nor punish some evil deeds or sins, but their righteousness and holy lives, so much so that he denies them the kingdom of heaven, and sends them to the fire of hell. Just as if he now said: All priests and monks, and what is called spiritual, none excluded, is 1) eternally condemned to hell, with all their being, where it is best. Who could hear or suffer such preaching? Now this is one thing, that he confesses that they have a righteousness, and lead a fine honorable life, and yet so completely rejects it, that where it is not better, it is already condemned, and all is lost that can be done with it.

Notice, secondly, that he is speaking of those who would gladly go to heaven, and their earnestness is that they think after another life, which the other great, raw multitude do not respect, and do not ask after God or God's word, to whom all that is said of the gospel is preached in vain. But to these it is preached, that they may know that such righteousness is false, which must be salted and punished, as that they may deceive both themselves and others, and lead from the right road to hell, and shine forth against it what is right godliness, as the law requires; as Christ will henceforth show.

V. 21. You have heard that it was said to the ancients, "You shall not kill. But he that killeth shall be guilty of judgment.

1) Wittenbergers: are.

Here he takes some of the ten commandments before him to explain them correctly, and shows how they, the Pharisees and scribes, have neither taught nor interpreted them any differently, except as the mere words lie there and read, from the outward rough notes. First of all, in this fifth commandment they have not considered anything more than the word "to kill," that it means to strike dead with the hand, and they let people stay on it as if nothing more were forbidden here; and they have made a nice cover for it, that they would not be guilty of the death-strike, although someone delivered another to death; As they delivered Christ to the Gentile Pilate, they did not want to stain their hands with blood, so that they remained pure and holy, so high that they did not even want to go into the judge's house, and yet they alone were the ones who brought him to death, and pushed Pilate against his will, so that he had to kill him [Joh. 18, 28. ff]. They still went as if they were completely pure and innocent, so that they also punished the apostles, Apost. 5:28, chastised them for it, saying, "Ye will bring this man's blood upon us." As if they were to say, "It was not we who killed him, but the Gentiles. Thus we read of King Saul in 1 Sam. 18:25 ff. He was angry with David and would have gladly killed him, but because he wanted to be holy, he thought not to kill him himself, but to send him among the Philistines to be killed there, so that his hand would be innocent of him.

Behold, this is the beautiful Pharisee holiness, which can make itself pure, and remain pious, if only it does not kill itself with its hand, although the heart is full of anger, hatred and envy, and secret evil and murderous malice, and the tongue full of cursing and blasphemy. As is the holiness of our papists, who have become vain masters in this chapter. And so that their holiness would not be punished, nor would Christ's word bind them, they helped him finely, and drew twelve counsels from it, that Christ had not commanded all this as necessary, but had set it for every man's good pleasure, as good counsel to keep whoever wants to earn something special before others; that it is quite a superfluous doctrine, which one might well do without.

But if you ask them for what reason they make such counsels, or by what means they prove it, they say, "Well, if one were to teach in this way, it would be called nimis onerativum legis christianae, that is, Christianity would be 1) greatly afflicted, as those of Paris 2) have publicly and insolently written against me. Yes, truly, a beautiful cause and great grievance, that a Christian should be kind to his neighbor, and not leave him in distress, as anyone would want to happen to him. And because she thinks it too hard, it must not be called commanded, but must be left to the free will of those who will gladly do it; but those who will not or cannot do it, shall not be burdened with it. So let us take Christ's word into our mouths, master his word, and make of it what we please. But he will not be deceived in this way, nor will he revoke his judgment, which he has given here and said: whoever does not have a better piety, heaven shall be closed to him and he shall be damned, and, as follows, he who says to his brother, "You fool," is also guilty of hellish fire. From which it is to be reckoned whether it is advised or commanded.

And here they have also found a little bell to help their lie, and thus say: it is well commanded to leave anger and resentment in the heart, 5) but not the signs of anger; that is, as one says in German: Forgive, but do not forget; and seal up a thought that you will not be angry nor do evil, and yet in the meantime deprive your neighbor of all kindness, do not show a good word nor a kind gesture. Here ask God Himself and Christ, why He does not show such kindness to those who crucify, blaspheme and revile Him in the most shameful way, but prays for them, saying: "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do" [Luc. 23, 34.], whether they are the most shameful boys, who deserve all punishment and wrath. Yes, should he have been so angry with us, who have been his enemies, and all idolatry and

1) Wittenberg wrong: so.

2) Walch, St. Louis Edition, vol. XVIII, 949.

3) Wittenberger: sinful.

4) Erlanger: to be. The Jenaer also has "sein" in the text, but such in the "Correctur" as a misprint.

5) Latin: emitters.

If he had blasphemed, he would have had to remain in heaven, not shed his blood and die for us, and say, "I will forgive, but I will not forget. Then we would all have remained the devil's own, and no man would have escaped from hell. In short, it is quite a shameful, damned little bell, and full of sin and shame that someone in Christendom has been allowed to teach such things against such a bright, public text; nor have they smeared all the books full of such lies, and still want to defend it brazenly. But here we shall see and learn to know our Pharisees and hypocrites with their great holiness, so they pretend with many special works, but meanwhile transgress God's commandment without any shame, and teach other people also in such a way, as Christ depicts them here and elsewhere.

It is true that one must be angry when those who should be angry do so, and that anger goes no further than to punish sin and evil. As when one sees another sinning, admonishes and warns him to desist from it etc., that is a Christian and brotherly, even a fatherly anger. For so you see in pious parents that they do not punish their children in such a way that they want to harm them, but that the evil is controlled and the evil is removed; just as the authorities must be angry and punish. Here it is right that there should be no anger in the heart, and yet angry signs and gestures must be made, since both word and fist are harsh and sharp, but the heart remains sweet and kind, and knows no resentment. Summa, it is the dear anger, which does no evil to anyone, but is the friend of the person, but the enemy of sin; as also nature may teach everyone. But this is not to be abused as a cover, 7) and to harbor and adorn resentment and envy in one's heart against one's neighbor under it, as those mock saints do and teach.

173 Christ therefore takes this commandment before him, saying, "Thus you have heard from the Pharisees, as Moses commanded, and as it has been taught from of old, Thou shalt not

6) Erlanger: Well.

7) Jena and Wittenberg: abuse.

kill" etc. With this you tickle and adorn yourselves, go in, as those who diligently teach and practice God's commandment, as they were taught from Moses and received from the ancients; plead and insist: There is Moses, who says: "Thou shalt not kill." You dwell on the word, and do not let it be interpreted further, for as it is crudely written there, the simple must say, "It is true, it is written so in the book; so darken the words with your whispering and idle bells, that one may not see what the words have in them and give. For, thinkest thou that he alone speaketh of the fist, when he saith, Thou shalt not kill? What does "thou" mean? Not your hand alone, nor your foot, nor your tongue, nor any other single member, but all that you are in body and soul. Just as when I say to someone, "You shall not do this," I do not speak with my fist, but with my whole person. Yes, even if I said, "Your fist should not do it," I do not mean the hand alone, but the whole person of which the fist is a part; for the hand alone would do nothing unless the whole body with all its members were involved.

174 Therefore it is said, "Thou shalt not kill," as if he said, "As many a limb as thou hast, as many a way as thou mayest find to kill, whether it be with the hand, or with the tongue, or with the heart, or with signs, or with gestures, look sourly on it, and do not 1) give life with thine eyes, or even with thine ears, if thou hearest not gladly to speak of it; all this is called "killed. For the heart and all that is in thee are so minded, that they would have him dead already. And although the hand is still, the tongue is silent, the eyes and ears are closed, yet the heart is full of murder and death.

But I say to you: Whoever is angry with his brother is guilty of judgment. And he that saith unto his brother, Racha, is guilty of counsel. But he that saith, Thou fool, is guilty of hell fire.

175 Behold, this is the right light, which showeth the right understanding of this commandment, and seeth most under eyes; whereas their foul gloss is put to shame, as a dark lantern.

1) "not" is missing in the Erlanger. - Latin: äiSavsnäo.

against the bright sun, and now shines with a different form, so that afterwards they are astonished at it and say: this is called mighty teaching, not like their scribes. Although this 2) interpretation is clear enough, and is often used elsewhere, we have to cut out the words a little here for the sake of the text. First, he says: "Whoever is angry with his brother is guilty of judgment," that is, he has forfeited the same punishment that goes over a man who kills, namely, that he is sentenced to death. For he repeats [v. 21] the very words that are in the text, Deut. 24, 17 (as he has now put on himself 4)): "He that killeth shall be guilty of judgment." Because he who is angry falls into the same judgment, he is also called a slayer. In the second and third: Whoever says to his brother, Nacha, or, You fool, is guilty of the council and of the infernal fire, he means the same thing, which is to be guilty of the judgment, namely, that he is guilty of being killed again.

(176) He mentions three things to show how the punishment becomes greater and more severe the more the sin continues and breaks out. For he speaks in the same way as it is done in court when a wrongdoer is to be punished. For he that hath committed the crime of death is first guilty of judgment, that is, that he be brought before the court, and be accused, and a sentence passed upon him, as he that hath forfeited death. This is the first degree or stage of death; but the judgment has not yet been passed, so that he may still have room to talk himself out of it and get rid of it. Secondly, when the sentence is pronounced that he is to die, he falls into the council, that one should deliberate over him, what punishment should be inflicted on him; there he is again closer to death, that he now cannot escape. Third, when the verdict has been passed and everything has been decided, he is handed over to the executioner to lead him and do him justice. Thus, with these three stages, he shows how one falls deeper and deeper into punishment, just as,

2) Erlanger: the.

3) "the" is missing in the Erlanger.

4) In the Jena: "as we have now dressed ourselves."

5) "him" is missing in the Erlanger.

who is to be executed, comes closer and closer to death. Therefore it is just said: Whoever is angry in his heart is already guilty of death before God's judgment; but whoever goes further and says Racha, or you fool, has already received the judgment on himself etc. Summa, he is already condemned to hell fire who is angry with his brother. But he who says, Nacha, belongs still deeper into hell; still deeper, however, he who also kills with words and the fist. So it is all a punishment and condemnation, and yet the same heavier and harder, after which the sin goes on, and breaks out stronger.

177 But what is called "Racha" is otherwise said, that it indicates all kinds of signs, which one shows out of anger against his neighbor. As when one turns his mouth and eyes away from him, or is cheerful and laughs in his fist when he is in a bad way, or otherwise shows himself in such a way that he would like him to be spoiled. As now there are many such poisonous, evil worms, which show themselves against us most bitterly, both publicly, and with secret practices and treacherousness, as if they heard nothing better than that we were all exterminated, and yet walk along as the holy, Christian people.

The other, "You fool," is not only the signs, but all words that come from an evil, poisonous heart that is hostile to the neighbor. Otherwise, when it comes from a good, motherly heart, it is not a sin. For there one may well punish and rebuke with words, as St. Paul calls his Galatians fools [Gal. 3:1], and Christ says to the disciples [Luc. 24:25], "O fools, and slow of heart to believe"; yes, not only that, but must also be angry, and set oneself sore and unkind with gifts. For all this is divine anger and resentment against evil, not against the person, but to help the neighbor. Summa, it is a necessary anger, which one cannot do without in any house, nor in any city 2) and authority, yes, on any preaching chair. For if father, mother, judge and preacher should shut their mouths and fists, and not resist or control evil, then the regiment and Christendom, and everything, would fall to the ground, through

1) "the" is missing in the Erlanger.

2) Erlanger: "no stand."

the world's wickedness. That is why it is said here: Enemy of the cause, and yet favorable to the person; as the jurists rightly say, if they also needed it rightly.

Therefore, when you offer your gift on the altar, if you think that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go first and make peace with your brother, and then come and offer your gift.

He makes a long sermon about this commandment, and is probably a light text to look at, but very a broad, common vice, especially among high, mighty, clever people; as, zi 3) kings, lords, and princes courts, and what something is or is able on earth, is in it most profoundly, and yet must not have the name. For it is also the most beautiful, and none that can so prettily preen and adorn itself with the appearance of holiness, under which many people deceive themselves and others; and do not see how they are heartily hostile to their neighbor, or bear a secret grudge against him, yet want to be serene, serve God, and, as he says here, go to the altar and sacrifice, thinking they are quite comfortable with it.

180 The ornament and beautiful cover is there, which is called zelas justitiae, such a virtue, which loves justice and is angry against evil, and cannot stand it; as then the sword and authority are ordained to administer justice, and to punish evil; as also father and mother, lord or wife, must be angry and punish. Then comes the pious rogue, puts on the same cloak, and says that he does it out of love for justice, and that he has right and just cause for it; how princes and others are full of poison, hatred and envy against ours, and so go along in it, making no conscience for them, and everything is vain indulgence and sanctity. For they also have the beautiful cover that they say they are enemies of heresy, and so a great virtue must come of it, a holy zeal and love of truth. And yet, at bottom, it is nothing but a shameful, poisonous hatred and resentment, which otherwise cannot prove and vent itself.

3) Wittenberger: an.

For I know, and may well say, that all our opponents (except our dear Lord Emperor for his own person, as he is not better informed) have no cause, nor do they know, why they hate and are hostile to us, because of loud envy and will of courage. For it is not because of some evil thing that they think that we are knaves or peelers, or that we are too close to them; so they also know, and have to confess, that our doctrine is the right truth. Nor are they so venomous that they would rather suffer the world full of vain desperate knaves than us and ours.

182 Thus there are many, even fine, honest, learned and otherwise righteous people, who walk in secret anger, envy and hatred, and become immersed in it, so that they are never aware of it, and all remain in the made conscience: they do it because of their office or because of justice. For the cover is too beautiful and too dazzling that no one may reproach them other than righteous and pious people. Then at last hardened hearts come out, strengthened and hardened in poisonous vice, and a sin in the Holy Spirit. For there is a twofold wickedness. First, that the heart is full of anger, hatred and envy. Secondly, it does not want to be sin or evil, but should be called virtue. Which is called God struck in the mouth and punished lies in his word.

Behold, therefore Christ diligently warns, that every man take heed lest he deceive himself with such hypocrisy and false pretense. For no one believes how it is such a simple doctrine, and yet goes so far, and affects such great people. For with these words, when he says, "When you offer your gift on the altar," he clearly shows that he is talking about those who serve God, and who want to be the true children of God, and have the praise that they are the first of all. What do they lack? Nothing, except that their hearts are full of hatred and envy. Dear one, what is it that you fast and pray without ceasing, giving all your goods for God's sake, chastening yourself to death, and doing as many good works as all the Carthusians, leaving God's commandment to be kept?

Do you not have a conscience that you disgrace and blaspheme people, and yet you want to make a great sacrifice? Just as if someone who has waged war and murder, and shed much blood, then gives a thousand guilders for them for the Mass of the soul; or if someone has stolen and robbed a large sum of money, then gives alms for the sake of God. So they deceive God (yes, themselves) with the beautiful hat, as if he should regard them as living saints.

Therefore he says: If you want to serve God and sacrifice, and have offended someone, or have anger against your neighbor, know in short that God does not want your sacrifice, but lay it down badly, and leave everything, and go ahead and reconcile with your brother. By this he means all the works that one can do for God's service or praise (for at that time there was no better work than sacrifice), and yet he rejects it altogether, that is, he leaves it standing badly; unless your heart tells you beforehand that you are reconciled to your neighbor, and that you know no wrath in yourself. When this is done, then come (he says) and bring your sacrifice. This he nevertheless puts, so that one does not think that he wants to reject or despise such a sacrifice. For it was not an evil work, but ordered and commanded by God; but this is evil, and even corrupteth it, that they have cast away the other higher commandments, and despised them. That is, the sacrifice abused against the neighbor.

There is also an abuse that goes higher, that one wants to be saved by it, to atone for sin, and to rely on it and defy God, which is said elsewhere. Otherwise it is a good work in itself, just as all other works of outward worship, such as praying and fasting, are not to be despised nor slackened, if the opinion and custom of the same is right, namely, that one does not do it to earn heaven by it, and the heart stands right with the neighbor, and thus both faith and love go pure and right. But if thou prayest and fastest, and yet speakest evil to thy neighbor, and bearest people away, and slanderest etc., saith

1) Erlanger: den.

He will not eat a morsel, but will wash and defile himself with his neighbor, contrary to God's commandment.

For this reason he punishes and reproves such fasting in the prophet Isaiah, chap. 58:3 ff, so that they may hurt their bodies and have great devotion, saying: "When you fast, you exercise your will and drive out all your guilty ones. You fast so that you quarrel and fight, and strike ungodly with your fists. Fast not so as ye do now, that a cry of you may be heard on high. "etc. And further teaches how to fast rightly: "This is a fast that I choose: Let go those who are unjustly afflicted 1) with you; let go those whom you afflict" etc. "Break thy bread to the hungry; if thou seest any naked, clothe him" etc. There you see, how it is all to do for the love of the neighbor.

V. 25 Be ready for your adversary soon, while you are still with him on the way, lest the adversary hand you over to the judge one day and be thrown into prison. I say unto thee, Verily thou shalt not come forth thence, till thou hast paid the last farthing.

In the previous text he preached to him who had offended or angered his neighbor, but here he says how he who has been offended should behave. And he continues the same as he began, how it goes in court, where two parts stand against each other, and one sues, the other is sued, and the judge pronounces the sentence, and the part that is guilty punishes. And is not otherwise, for so much is said, that he who offends the other shall be reconciled to him in a friendly manner; but the other shall be reconciled and gladly forgiven. Now this is also a subtle trick, and here also many people can finely cover up and decorate their mischief by saying that they will gladly forgive, but not forget. For there is always the remedy of which I have said that anger is just against evil, and they think that they have good cause and that it is right and well done.

Therefore he warns here again, and shows that in this 2) commandment not only ver-

1) d. i. connected.

2) Erlanger: dem.

It is not forbidden to be angry, but also commanded that you gladly forgive and forget what has happened to you, as God has done to us, and still does, when He forgives sin, that He erases it from the record and never remembers it. But not that you must or can forget it to such an extent that you may no longer remember it, but so that you may have just as kind a heart toward your neighbor as before he offended you. But if the pen remains in your heart that you are not as kind and gracious to him as before, then it is not forgotten, nor forgiven from the heart, and you are still just the prankster who comes before the altar with the sacrifice, and wants to serve God, and yet is full of anger, envy and hatred in your heart. But very few people pay attention to this; they all go about in their beautiful robes and do not see how their heart stands against this commandment, which, in short, suffers no anger or resentment against their neighbor.

(189) It is true, as has been said, that anger must and should be; but see that it goes as it should go, and that you are commanded to be angry not for your own sake but for the sake of your office and God, and not to mix the two, your person and your office. For your person you must not be angry with anyone, no matter how much you are offended; but where your office demands it, you must be angry, even if no harm has come to you for your person. Thus a pious judge is angry with the wrong-doer, whom he does not wish any evil for his person, and would rather leave him unpunished, and goes to one heart, since nothing but love is vain toward one's neighbor, and only the evil deed must bear the wrath which must be punished. If this were not the case, there would be neither wrath nor punishment. But if your brother has done something against you and has made you angry, and he asks you to stop it, and puts away the evil work, then the anger must also go away. Where does the secret resentment come from, which you nevertheless keep in your heart, when the work and the cause of the anger is gone, and now he has shown other works, as he is converted, and has become a different person, and a new tree with new fruits, who now loves you?

3) "a" is missing in the Erlanger.

4) Wittenberger: nothing.

5) "and cause... Works" is missing in the Wittenberg.

lind honors you in the highest way, that he accuses and punishes himself against you? And you must be a desperate man before God and all the world, if you do not show yourself against him in such a way, and forgive from the heart, so that such a judgment befalls you, as Christ is threatening here.

V. 27-30. You have heard that it was said to the ancients, You shall not commit adultery. But I say unto you: He that looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart. But if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee. It is better for thee that one of thy members perish, and not the whole body be cast into hell. If thy right hand offend thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee. It is better for thee that one of thy members perish, and not the whole body be cast into hell.

(190) Now this is a piece of salt against the doctrine of the Pharisees, wherein he dealeth two things. First, about adultery; then about divorce. Of adultery they had interpreted it like the fifth commandment, teaching that it was no more forbidden than if adultery were committed by deed, and they did not consider it a sin, even if their hearts were inflamed with evil desire and love for another, and even if they showed themselves by heart with unhandsome words and shameful gestures, and nothing harmed their holiness if they only did good works, sacrificed diligently and prayed etc. This is not teaching God's commandment, but rather going against it, and not making people righteous, but rather giving them more room and leave for all kinds of sin and fornication. But here you hear another master, who makes such their holiness sins and disgraces, and rightly shines into this commandment, and concludes that adultery also happens with the eyes, ears, mouth, yes, most of all with the heart. As when a man looks at a woman, or jokes with her, even remembers her with evil air.

191 Now behold how it must have been among this people, and what manner of men Christ found, because not only the great and common multitude, but also those who presided over other people, were not the same.

1) Erlanger: "one" instead of "a man".

The people who are supposed to teach and govern not only admit this, but also do it themselves, and strengthen the cause of adultery, and yet want to be scolded for being pious, if only they do not publicly break the marriage with the deed. Although it is well to reckon how pious and chaste people remain for the sake of the work, where one admits so much and comes so far that the heart is full of ardor, and breaks out with all kinds of signs, words and gestures against each other. What else can follow here, but also the work, where one would only have room? Or, what is he the more pious because of it, if he leaves the work he would like to do, and burns for it in his heart without ceasing? Even as a mischievous man can wish his master dead, even if he lies imprisoned in the dungeon, and would gladly strangle him himself, if he could only get to it; should he not therefore be called a murderer, or even be called pious?

192. But do you say, "If it is true that marriage can be broken even with a reputation, how should one do it? After all, both male and female must live among each other, and must deal with each other daily; or should one run away from the world, or gouge out the ears and eyes, and have the heart torn away? Answer: Christ does not here declare that one should live, eat, drink, even laugh and be merry among one another; all this is still without harm, if only the part of it remains, which is called: "to desire your 2). The Jews, however, want to help them 2) by saying that it is not a sin to love another with thoughts and signs, just as they do not consider it a sin to be angry with one's neighbor and to be hostile in one's heart; so that one does not have to condemn the whole nation and so many holy people as if they were murderers and adulterers. Therefore they must give these commandments a nose, that they should not be so strictly interpreted, but, as our learned men have said, There may be good counsels for the perfect, but no man bound with them. And from this they have gone so far that many also argue about it and doubt: whether a bad case with a little hair outside of marriage is also sin? And is

2) "to" is missing in the Wittenberger.

3) Wittenberger and Erlanger: ihm.

Although it is now an honor among sensible people in French-speaking countries that even those who leave it at that are considered almost holy. Again, however, there are some who are too eager and want to be so holy that they also forbid the reputation and are taught to avoid all company of men or women. Hence come the excellent saints who have run away from the world into the deserts and monasteries, that they abstain from all seeing and hearing, commerce and fellowship of the world.

193 But Christ sets the contradiction on both sides, and will not let God's commandment be turned in this way, and so advise the matter, that one should leave the bridle to fornication and adultery. For he says in clear and concise words that whoever looks at a woman with evil desire is an adulterer, and condemns him to hellfire when he says: it is better that one's eye be plucked out than that the whole body be thrown into hell. So he does not want such saints who run away from the people. For if this were to be the case, then nothing of the Ten Commandments should apply anywhere. For if I am separated from all men in the wilderness, no man shall thank me that I commit not adultery, nor kill, nor steal. And yet I think that I am holy and have gone far beyond the Ten Commandments, which were given by God to teach us how to live rightly in the world toward our neighbor.

For we were not created 1) to walk apart from one another, but to live with and among one another, suffering both good and evil. For since we are human beings, we must also bear all kinds of human misfortune and the curse that has come upon us, and so prepare ourselves to dwell among evil people, so that each one may prove his holiness there and not be made impatient to flee from it. For we must live on earth as among thistles and thorns, in such a being, which is full of temptation, opposition and accident. So you have not helped yourself, even though you have run away from people, yet you carry the same mischief with you, that is, the heat of the moment.

1) "so" is missing in the Wittenberger.

and evil desire that is in the flesh and blood. For thou canst not deny thy father and mother, though thou be alone and shut up, nor cast thy flesh and blood from thee and leave them. It is not a matter of moving your foot away and fleeing from it, but of remaining in it, standing chivalrously and fighting against all kinds of temptation, and tearing through it with patience and winning.

Therefore Christ is a right master, who teaches you not to run from people, nor to change your place, but to attack yourself, and to cast away from you the eye or hand that offends you, that is, to take away the cause of sin, which is the evil desire and lust that is in yourself and comes from your own heart. If this remains outside, then you can well be without sin among people and deal with everyone. Therefore he speaks clearly (as said): If you look at a woman to desire her, then you have broken the marriage in the heart. He does not deny this reputation, for he is speaking to those who have to live among people in the world, as the entire previous and following sermon of this chapter sufficiently shows. But this is what he wants: to separate reputation from desire.

You may look at every woman or man's image, but see to it that only the desire for it remains. For God has ordained that each man should have his own wife or husband, so that he may keep and turn his lust and desire there. If you can stay with it, he will grant you that, pronounce his blessing on it, and let it please him, as his order and creature. 2) But if you want to go further, if you are not satisfied with what God has given you to desire, and if you look for others, you have already gone too far, and mixed the two together, so that the reputation is also spoiled by the desire.

197 This is also the greatest cause of adultery, which must always strike, that one does not regard God's word in his spouse, as that which God gives him, and blesses him, but opens his eyes at the sight of another; 3) then soon the heart hangs.

2) Erlanger: Business.

3) Wittenberger: "ansihet".

The lust and desire that I alone should have for my wife beats after my eyes. Flesh and blood are so shrewd without that, that they soon get tired of it, and do not like what they have, and always look for another, and the devil blows, so that one sees nothing in his spouse but what is infirm, and puts out of sight what is good and praiseworthy. Hence it comes about that every one is more beautiful and better than mine; indeed, many a man is so blinded by a beautiful, pious wife that he grows angry with her and becomes attached to a hideous, shameful brat.

198. Therefore, this would be the right art and strongest defense against it (as I have said elsewhere about marriage and conjugal life), if everyone learned to look at his spouse according to God's word, which is the most precious treasure and most beautiful ornament that can be found in a man or woman, and reflected in it; then he would love and value his spouse as a divine gift and treasure, and think so if he saw another (whether she would be more beautiful than his): If she is beautiful, she is 1) not too beautiful, and because she would be the most beautiful on earth, I have at home a much more beautiful ornament on my spouse, which God has given me and adorned with his word before all others, even if she were not beautiful in body or otherwise infirm. For when I look at all the women in the world, I find none that I can boast of, as I can say of mine with a happy conscience: God Himself gave this one to me and placed her in my arms, and I know that it is heartily pleasing to Him, along with all the angels, if I adhere to her with love and faithfulness. Why then would I despise such a delicious, divine gift and cling to another, since I do not find such treasure and adornment?

Behold, I could look upon all women, and talk with them, and laugh, and be merry, that yet the air and lust thereof should remain, and none should be so fair and lovely to me, that I should do contrary to the word and commandment of God. And even though I am of the flesh

1) "they" is missing in the Erlanger.

I would not have to allow myself to be challenged by God and blood, nor would I have to allow myself to be overcome, but would fight against it chivalrously and win through God's word, and live in the world in such a way that no malice could make me evil and no irritation could make me an adulterer. But because one does not see or respect such God's word, it is easy for one to become weary of his spouse and resent him, and prefer to win another, and not be able to resist lust and desire. For he does not know the art, that he could look at his spouse rightly according to the beauty and adornment, so that God has clothed her for him. He looks no further than the general appearance of his wife, how shapeless or infirm she seems to him, and how another seems more beautiful and better. So you understand when looking is sin or not sin, namely, that one does not look at another, as each man should look at his wife.

(200) But it is not necessary to be so strict here, even though someone is challenged and feels that such lust and desire for another stirs up that he should be condemned for it. For I have often said that it is not possible to live in the flesh without sinful evil inclination, not only in this piece, but also against all the commandments. That is why the teachers have made such a distinction here, and I will leave it at that: that an evil thought without consent is not a mortal sin. It is not possible, if one has offended you, that the heart should not feel or be moved, and rise up to take revenge. But this is still not condemnable, because it only does not decide and prescribe him. harm, but resists such irritation. So also in this case, that the devil should not be able to shoot into the heart with evil thoughts and lust, it is not possible to resist; but then see to it that you do not let such arrows stick and grow in, but soon pluck them out again and throw them away, and do as an old father taught before, and said: I cannot resist that a bird flies over my head; but that I can well resist, that they do not nest in my hair, or bite off my nose. 2)

2) The same history in the appendix to the Table Talks, 819.

Walch, St. Louis edition, vol. XXII, 1662 f.

446 Erl. 43, IN-N3. Interpretation of the 5th, 6th and 7th Cap. Matthaei. W. VII, SSS-S64. 447

So it is not in our power to resist this or any other temptation, lest thoughts should come into us; if we only let them come in, lest they be admitted, though they knock, and forbid that they take root, lest a resolution and consent be made of them. But it is nothing less than sin, yet included in the common forgiveness, because we cannot live in the flesh without a great deal of sin, and everyone must have his devil; as St. Paul also complains about the sin that dwells in him, Rom. 7:18, and says, "that he finds no good thing in his flesh.

But that some have disputed here, and sought so closely whether it is sinful for a man to desire a woman to marry him, or again, a man? is foolish, and both asked contrary to Scripture and nature. For when should people become married, if they did not have air and love together? Yes, that is why God has given such love to bride and bridegroom, otherwise everyone would flee and avoid the marriage state. He has also commanded in Scripture that both husband and wife should love one another, and shows that He is very pleased when husband and wife are well together. Therefore, truly such air and love must not remain outside, and may well be happiness and grace that it only lasts long. For misfortune strikes without, both from the flesh, which soon grows weary of this estate, and will not bear the daily adversity that befalls it; and also from the devil, who cannot bear it when he sees that two spouses hold each other with true love, and does not celebrate until he awakens cause for impatience, discord, hatred and bitterness among them. So that it is not only necessary, but also difficult, and the only art of the Christian, to love his wife or husband rightly, so that one bears the other's infirmities and all kinds of accidental misfortune. In the first place, they want to devour each other for love, as they say; but when the lust is over, the devil is there with the excess, and wants to take away your desire too much here, and set it on fire too much elsewhere.

This was recently said about lust and desire. But what shall one say to it.

That Christ is so hard, and is called to pluck out the eye, and to cut off the hand, when it vexeth us? Shall we corrupt ourselves, make ourselves lame and blind? So we should also deprive ourselves of life, and each one become a murderer of himself. Denu, if we were to throw away everything that annoys us, we would first have to tear out the heart. But what would that be different, because the whole nature and GOttes0 creature exterminated? Answer: Here you see clearly that in this whole chapter Christ speaks nothing of worldly order and nature, and that all such sayings, which are found now and then in the Gospel (as, denying oneself, hating one's soul, leaving everything etc.), do not belong at all to the worldly or imperial regiment, or are to be understood according to the Sachsenspiegel, as the lawyers call gouging out eyes. How else could this life and regiment exist? But are spoken only of the spiritual life and being, since one does not outwardly cast out his eyes and hand in the body before the world, but in the heart before God, denying and forsaking oneself and all things. For he does not teach to wield the fist or the sword, nor to rule body and goods, but only the heart and conscience before God; therefore one does not have to drag his words into the law book or worldly regiment at all.

(203) In this way he also speaks of the reaping in Matth. 19, 12, where he places three kinds of reapers or eunuchos. The first and the others, who were either born this way by nature or were cut by the hands of men, who are also called the world and lawyers. The third, however, who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven, are other eunuchs, who are not called eunuchs outwardly in the body, but nevertheless in the heart or spiritually, and not in a worldly way, but (as he says) eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven. For he has nothing to do with the worldly. So here, too, we should spiritually pluck out eyes, hand, and heart, and let everything go so that it does not bother us, and still live in this worldly being, since we cannot do without any of it.

1) "GOttes" is missing in the Wittenberg.

(204) This is the opinion: If you feel that you are looking at a woman with evil desire, pluck out that eye or face (as this is against God's commandment), not of the body, but of the heart, from which the heat and desire come, then you have plucked it out correctly. For if the evil desire is from the heart, the eye will not sin, nor will it offend you, and now you see the woman with the same bodily eyes, but without desire, and it is just as if you had not seen her. For the eye of which Christ speaks, which was before, which is called the eye of lust, is never there, although the eye of the body remains intact. So he also says of those who are cut off. If the heart has decided to live chastely without marriage (where it has grace), it has cut itself to the kingdom of heaven, and must not injure any member externally in the body. Summa, it is such cutting and plucking that is not done by the fist or the executioner, but by God's word in the heart.

Therefore they are fools, who drag such and such sayings out of the spiritual into the external, worldly being, as if Christ had taught against the worldly rule, yes, against natural order and creature. Therefore, some have been so grossly deceived that they, out of impatience and desperation to fight against flesh and blood, have gone to it, and have helped themselves, that even the bishops in the conciliis have had to forbid it. All this is due to ignorance, that they do not distinguish between Christ's and the world's rule and doctrine; they remain in the coarse sense of cutting, that they think no further than what the world says and understands in its essence; whereas Christ himself excludes and takes away the same understanding, and distinguishes those who are cut by nature or by hands (whether by themselves or by others), and sets against them those who are neither cut by hands nor by nature. So that he may clearly show that he is speaking only of spiritual cutting, since the body is whole and intact with all its members, and yet does not have such heat as others, which cannot be cut out with hands.

1) "the" is missing in the Erlanger.

Flesh and blood cut, although one deprives oneself of the natural,! As they themselves say that such Eunuchi or cut have much more desire and love for women, than any other. Therefore, even great kings 2) liked to have such people as chamberlains, because of the great loyalty and love they bear to wives.

(206) It also seems as if Christ often used these words, "Does thine eye vex thee," "Does thy hand or foot vex thee? For elsewhere in the Gospel they are also applied to other things; so that he used it for a common saying, and drew it as a common simile to all kinds of sin, that one should not follow the cause and incitement to sin; but here it is applied and interpreted to a particular thing, namely to adultery, that it is called plucking out the eye, which wants to anger us through evil desire. As adultery is commonly caused by sight, and enters the heart through the eyes, where one does not resist the irritation. So the same words in Matth. 18, 8. 9. are applied to other troubles, that it is called an angry eye or hand, when a preacher and teacher, or a lord and tyrant, wants to seduce you from the truth and right doctrine, and is called to pluck it out and throw it away; so that one would say: You are indeed my eye or hand, master or ruler, but if you want to lead me away from the truth to false faith, or force me into evil works, then I will not follow you etc.

V. 31, 32: It is also said, Whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a bill of divorcement. But I say unto you: He that divorceth his wife (except for adultery) maketh her to commit adultery. And whosoever shall marry a woman that is put away shall commit adultery.

Here one sees finely how they were torn by this commandment, given room and freedom enough to act against it, and yet not to be counted for sin, if only one did not make it too rough with public adultery, because it was permitted to them, if one was angry with his wife, and would have liked to be rid of her, and had air to another, that he would like to be

2) Erlanger: Queen.

divorce her, and woo another, who pleased him greatly. And although she had another husband, 1) they could masterfully wrest his wife from the other, so that he had to let her go, and still not be taken by force. So it was also a small thing with them, if one had slept with another, that he thereby got her to himself, because otherwise they might have more than one wife, and had indeed brought it about that each one acted as he wished with marriage and divorce without shyness and knowledge. For this reason, Christ took this part of divorce with him, salting and punishing their excesses and abuses of legal divorce, to instruct the consciences how to proceed in this rightly, so that they do not go too far and go against the commandment. But he only touches on it here in brief words; for afterwards in chapter 19, v. 3 ff. he goes on with it.

I have said, however, how marriage and divorce are to be handled in our country now, that it should be ordered to the lawyers and thrown under the secular rule, because marriage is a worldly, external thing, like wife, child, house and farm, and other things that belong to the governmental rule, as they are subject to reason, Genesis 1:1. 1 Therefore, what the authorities and wise men conclude and order according to right and reason, let it remain so. For Christ neither sets nor orders anything here as a jurist or ruler in external matters, but only as a preacher who instructs the conscience, so that everyone may have the right to the law of separation, and not to overreach and his own will against God's commandment. Therefore, we do not want to go any further here, except to see how it was with them, and how those who want to be Christians should conduct themselves (for the unbelievers do not concern us, as they must not be governed with the Gospel, but with coercion and punishment), so that we may keep our office pure, and not reach further than we are commanded.

209 In the 5th book of Moses, Cap. 24, 1. ff., it says: "If a man takes a wife in marriage, he shall be married.

1) Erlanger: hold.

Ulld she does not please him, for the sake of some displeasure, then he shall give her a letter of divorce, and thus let her go" etc. But nevertheless binds a shillelagh with it, that the same man (where he would like to have her again afterwards) may not take her again to himself. 2) Now, they soon learned and honestly abused the law, so that every man quickly left his wife and pushed her away when he was tired of her and had a desire for another (although Moses only allowed it so far if he found an unwillingness or infirmity in her, so that they could not well stay with each other), and went so freely with it that they themselves saw that it was not to be praised, and especially frivolous, and asked Christ about it, Matth. 19, 3. ff.: whether it would also be right to divorce for the sake of any cause? He also answers, and reads a hard text on it, which they had not heard before, and concludes just as here: that both, who divorces, and a divorced woman frees, except for the sake of adultery, breaks the marriage); and makes that she also breaks the marriage, where she takes another. (For otherwise she could not break marriage where she remained without a husband.) Thus he not only punishes them for being careless about divorce, but teaches that they should not divorce at all, or if they divorce, both remain without marriage, and concludes that divorce is always a cause of adultery.

210 But when they ask [vv. 7, 8], "Why did Moses permit such a divorce?" he answers, "For the sake of your hard heads he permitted it. Not that it was fine or well done, but because you are such wicked and unrighteous people that it is better to allow it than to do evil, or to cause trouble, or to commit murder, or to live with one another in constant, eternal hatred, strife and enmity. How then it would also be advisable (if the secular authorities wanted to order such things) for the sake of some strange, stubborn, troublemaking heads, who can suffer nothing everywhere, and serve nothing at all for the conjugal life, to let them divorce. For one cannot govern in any other way for the sake of people's wickedness, one must often

2) "u. s. w." is missing in the Wittenberg.

The first thing to do is to let up a little, although it is not a good thing that nothing untoward should happen.

211 It is therefore decreed that those who desire to be Christians shall not divorce, but shall each keep his spouse, and suffer and bear with him good and evil, though it be strange, odd, and infirm; or, if he divorce, that he remain without marriage. And it is not valid to make a liberty out of the marriage bond, as if it were in our power to drive, change and walk with it as we would like, but it is said, as Christ says [Matth. 19, 6.]: "What God has joined together, let not man put asunder."

For such evil does not come from anywhere, because people do not regard the marriage state according to God's word as his work and order, nor do they respect his will, that he has given every man his spouse to keep, and to bear such adversity as occurs in the marriage state for his pleasure; they regard it no differently than a mere human, worldly being, so that God has nothing to do with it. That's why we soon get tired of it, and if it doesn't work out the way we want, we soon want to leave and change. Nevertheless, God has sent us to do no better. As it commonly happens, when one changes and improves all things, and no one wants to bear his lack, but to have everything in the purest way and without unwillingness, that he gets another, since he finds so much or ten times more unwillingness, not only in this, but in all other things.

For there can be no other way on earth; there must be much trouble and unhappiness every day in every house, city and country. And there is no state on earth in which one does not have to suffer much that hurts him, both from those who belong to him, as wife, child, servant, underlings, and by heart from neighbors and all kinds of random accidents. When a man sees and feels such things, he soon grows tired and weary of his position, or goes out with impatience, anger and cursing, and if he cannot avoid such hardships or turn them around, he wants to change his position; he thinks that every position and character is better, and he is not able to avoid them.

When he has changed for a long time, he finds trouble for evil. For to change is easy and soon done; but to mend is troublesome and strange. This is what happened to the Jews with their marriages and their divorces.

214. Therefore, one should do in this as we have always taught and admonished: If someone wanted to start something that would be blessed and well advised, even in such bodily matters as becoming married, sitting at home, taking a stand, etc. that he would call upon and therefore welcome God, who is to give it and is his. For it is not a small gift of God, if someone comes upon a pious, sorry spouse; why then would you not ask him to let it go well? For the first rut and foresight will not do it, nor have the time, if he does not himself give his blessing and happiness to it, and helps that one can bear such accidental adversity. Therefore, those who do not do this, but fall into it out of their own self-will, as if they were not allowed by God to do it, do not learn to do it, and it is only right that they should have purgatory and hell inside, and not be allowed by the devil. And because they bear no unpleasantness with patience, but have read everything in the purest way, and want to take away and cancel the article called forgiveness of sins, they have for a reward a restless, impatient heart, and so must suffer misfortune twofold, and have no thanks for it. But enough has been said about this elsewhere.

215. But askest thou, Is there no cause at all for which man and woman may separate and change? Answer: Christ puts here and Matth. 19, 9. only this one, which is called adultery, and draws it from the law of Moses, which punishes adultery with death. Since death alone separates marriage and makes it free, an adulterer is also already divorced, not by man, but by God Himself, and not only from his spouse, but also from this life. For by committing adultery he has divorced himself from his spouse, and separated the marriage that he should not separate nor divorce, and thus forfeited death, so that he is already dead before God, even though the judge does not kill him. Because now here God

the other part is released and free, that it is not bound to keep its spouse, as fragile as he has become, if it wishes to do so.

For we neither call nor increase such divorces, but command the authorities to act therein, and let it go accordingly, which secular law orders in this matter. But rather than advising those who want to be Christians, it would be much better to admonish and encourage both parties to remain with each other, and the innocent spouse to be reconciled to the guilty one (where it humbles itself and wants to improve), and to forgive him out of Christian love. Unless there was no hope of recovery, or the guilty party, thus reconciled and taken into grace, wanted to abuse such kindness and nevertheless continue in a public, free manner, relying on it as if he were to be spared and forgiven. In this case, I would not advise, nor would I be called upon to show mercy, but would rather help such people to be beaten to a distemper or to be put into a sack. For to sin once is still to forgive, but to sin willfully on grace and forgiveness is not to suffer. For, as I have said, without this we know not how to force anyone to take a public whore or adulteress to himself again, if he will not, or cannot do so because of disgust. For we read of Joseph, Matthew 1:19, [that although] he was a devout man, yet he would not take Mary, his trusted bride, to himself (when he saw that she was with child). And therefore he is praised, because he would go away from her secretly, and not accuse her, nor kill her, as he might have done.

217 Above this cause of adultery is another, when one spouse forsakes the other, as when one runs away from the other out of sheer spite. As if a pagan were with a Christian, or, as now happens, that one spouse is in the Gospel, but the other is not (of which St. Paul says 1 Cor. 7, 13 ff.), whether such a divorce also applies? Then St. Paul concludes: "If one spouse wants to remain, the other should keep it; even if they are not one for the sake of faith, faith must not destroy the marriage.

But if the other part does not want to stay, let it go. You 1) are therefore not trapped nor bound to run after him. But if a boy otherwise runs away from his spouse without his knowledge or will, leaves house, farm, wife and child, stays outside for two or three years, or as long as he pleases (as now happens a lot), and when he has married and brought his own through, wants to come home again and sit in again, that the other part should be bound to wait for him as long as he wants, and take him to himself again: Such a boy should not only be forbidden house and farm, but also the land, and the other part, where he did not want to come again, if he was required and long enough to wait for him, only freshly acquitted.

218 For such a one is much worse than a heathen and an unbeliever, even less to suffer than a bad adulterer; who, though once fallen, can yet amend himself, and render his former fidelity to his spouse; but this one drives his loud courage with marriage, and does not hold his wife and child that he should dwell and remain conjugally with them, but that he may know a certain safe appearance, if he desire to come again. But it is said: Whoever wants to have wife and child, he should stay with them, bear good and evil with them as long as he lives; or if he does not want to be taught that he must do it, or is even divorced from wife, house and farm. But where there are no such causes, other faults and defects shall not hinder, nor divorce the marriage, except in cases of wrath, or other accidents. But if they divorce (says St. Paul), they shall both remain without marriage.

This shall be said briefly of this trade in the text, for I have otherwise written enough about it. The most important thing against such divorce and other misfortunes is, as I have said [§ 214], that each one learns to bear with patience the 2) common infirmities and accidents in his state and in this life, and to hold them to the advantage of his spouse, and to know,

1) Erlanger: "and" instead of "you".

2) "the" is missing in the Erlanger.

That not everything can nor will go right and according to our purpose. If you cannot have it any better in your own body, and have to suffer all kinds of filth and unpleasantness, which it causes you every day, because you should throw away everything that is unclean in it, then you would have to start at the belly, which must nourish you and keep you alive.

220. If then you can suffer this in your body, that it makes you stink before you look around, or begins to fester and fester, that nothing pure remains in all your skin, and keep everything to it, even proving all the more good and love by waiting, washing, carrying and helping where it lacks something, why will you not do the same here to your own spouse, whom God has given you, in whom you have greater treasure and more cause to love? For there should be such love among Christians as one member of the body has for another (as St. Paul often exhorts), in that one takes care of the other's infirmities, reaches in, carries and lifts them up, and does everything in which it knows how to help him. Therefore our proper chief article is nothing but the forgiveness of sin, both in ourselves and toward others: that as Christ in his kingdom unceasingly bears and forgives us all infirmities, so also we bear and forgive one another in all states and things. Whoever does not want this, may God grant that he will never have rest, and that his simple misfortune or affliction will be tenfold more severe.

V. 33-37. You have heard that it was said to the ancients, "You shall not take a false oath, and you shall keep your oath to God. But I say unto you, swear not by heaven, for it is the throne of God; nor by the earth, for it is the footstool of his feet; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of a great king. Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, for thou canst not make one hair white or black. But let your speech be yea, yea, nay, nay; that which is above is of evil.

221 This text is also stretched with many glosses, and many a delusion and error is drawn from it, that many great doctors have

and have not been able to make themselves fit for it, that here it is forbidden in such a dry way: one should not swear at all, but remain badly Yes Yes, and No No; that some have stretched their consciences so tightly that one doubts whether one should also make an original peace when he is released from prison, or whether one should accept a peace and treaty with the Turk or unbeliever by an oath etc. Now one cannot deny that Christ himself and St. Paul have often sworn, and that it is written that those who swear by his name will be praised; therefore a distinction must be made here, so that one may understand the text correctly.

But we have heard enough that Christ does not want to speak anything into the worldly rule and order, nor to take anything away from the authorities, but only preaches to the individual Christians how they should live for themselves in their nature. Therefore swearing is to be regarded as forbidden, just as killing and looking at or coveting a woman is forbidden above (v. 21 ff.). Killing is right, and yet not right. To covet a man or a woman is sin, and not sin; but so that both may be rightly divided, that is, that it may be said to me and to thee, If thou killest, thou doest wrong; if thou lookest on a woman to covet her, thou doest wrong. But to a judge he says, If thou killest [not], and punishest not, thou shalt be punished. So to a husband or wife: If you do not keep yourself to your spouse, you do wrong. So it is both to kill and not to kill; to be with a wife and not to be with a wife. Namely, thou shalt not kill, nor be angry, nor love a wife, unless thou hast the special word or command of God. But if you are angry because God calls you to be, or if you have a wife according to God's word, both are right; for what God tells you and calls you is much different than what you do yourself.

223) Now as you have understood this, understand this also: that it is forbidden here not to swear at all, just as he has forbidden killing so completely that there may be no anger in the heart; likewise, that one should be so completely alien from husband and wife, that one may be

Nor look upon her, nor think to desire her. And yet it would be a harmful sermon to preach it in the magistracy or in the marriage state, and to say to the judge, Thou shalt not be angry, nor do the sign or work of wrath; or to the married couple, Thou shalt not look upon thy wife or husband, nor love him; but [one] must reverse the matter here, and teach the antitype, and say, Thou judge shalt be angry and punish; and every man have and love his spouse. How then does Christ say that one should not desire a wife or have anger in his heart? Answer, as I said, he speaks of the wife that is not given to thee by God, and of the wrath that is not commanded thee: thou shalt have none. But where it is commanded thee, it is no more thine but God's wrath, and no more thy desire, but given and ordained of God: for thou hast. God's word to love your spouse and not to desire another. So also, from swearing, one must see where one has God's word or not.

224. But that he is so hard on the prohibition here, he is also doing against their false teachers, who preached that oaths and swearing, even if it were done without necessity and God's word, were not sin; Indeed, they had made a distinction (as Christ here shows) as to how one should swear freely, and which oaths should be valid or not; as that one might swear by heaven, or by Jerusalem, or by his head; these would be small oaths, and would not bind so hard, if only one did not invoke God's name. In the end, therefore, they had come to the point where a bad yes and a bad no counted for nothing, and they thought that nothing mattered if they did not keep something that they had not sworn to keep. Just as they had taught about killing, that a secret anger and malice should not be considered a sin; so also if a man was hostile to his wife, had no desire nor love for her, but might well have a desire for another, and proved this with looks and jokes and other signs.

225 He began to preach against such unrighteous saints, saying, "If you do not change and become more devout, you will not be able to

you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. It is not valid to swear as you do, that it should be right and valid where and when you want; but it is said: You should not swear at all, neither by the temple, nor by Jerusalem, nor by your head, as little as by God Himself; but what you do with each other should be yes and no, and yes and no should remain. For this is the misuse of God's name, where one passes over this with oaths and swears, as if a bad yes and no should not apply nor bind, unless God's name were involved. After that, it is also 1) an abuse to swear so lightly, as is now common, since one almost uses God's name for every word. All of this should be forbidden, just as swearing by the name of God should not be.

226 For swearing, like swearing, is both good and evil. For we read in the Scriptures that holy people often cursed; as, Noah cursed his one son, Ham [Gen. 9, 25.], and the patriarch Jacob spoke an evil blessing and curse over his three sons, Reuben, Levi and Simeon [Gen. 49, 4. ff.]. Item, Moses against Korah 2) [4 Mos. 16, 5.]. Yes, Christ himself in the Psalter curses his Judas, and in the Gospel about the false teachers; and St. Paul, Gal. 1, 8, curses all teachers who preach differently (even if it were an angel from heaven), that they should be anathema, that is, banished and cursed by God. As if we said: God must hinder them, and destroy them to the ground, and give them neither grace nor happiness. So the time comes when one must curse or do wrong. As that we should now pronounce a blessing on it and wish it well, that pope, bishops and princes deal with such poisonous practices and evil tricks against the gospel, to overthrow pious people's blood and to throw Germany into each other; this does not belong to Christians, but should and must say to it: Dear Lord, curse, destroy and plunge all their plots into the abyss of hell. Therefore, no one can rightly pray the Lord's Prayer, he

1) "yet" is missing in the Wittenberger.

2) In the old editions: "Core".

must curse to it. For when he prays: Hallowed be thy name, let thy kingdom come, let thy will be done etc., then he must take everything on his house that is against it, and say: Cursed, maligned, profaned must all other names be, and all kingdoms that are against thee be destroyed and torn, all suggestions, wisdom and will go to the ground etc.

But this is the difference: No one shall curse or swear of his own accord unless he has God's word that he should curse or swear. For, as I said, where it is in and according to the word of God, it is all right to swear, to be angry, to lust after a woman etc. But that is to have God's word for it, if he commands me to do it as an official and for his sake, or demands it through those in office. As if by way of example, if you were imprisoned and in the hands of the authorities, and they demanded an oath to 1) Urfried; or if a prince demands an oath that you owe him; or a judge demands it from a witness; then you are obligated to do it. For there is the word that you shall obey the authorities. For God has 2) so ordered and arranged the government that one must be bound against the other, so that all erroneous things are settled, separated and put away by the oath, as the epistle to the Ebrians says [Cap. 6, 16].

But if thou sayest, Yea, here is another word which Christ saith, Thou shalt not swear." Answer, as above 173 ff] Said of killing and anger: Thou shalt not do it but for thyself. Here, however, you do not swear, but the judge who calls you to it, and applies as much as [if] he did it himself, and is now the judge's mouth. Now Christ neither swears nor gives anything to the authorities, but lets their rule go as it should and must go, but he swears to you that you do not swear out of your own understanding, pride or habit, just as he swears to you to draw the sword, but does not refuse to be obedient to the authorities, if you are not willing to do so.

1) Thus the Wittenberg. Jena and Erlangen "zur". But in 221, the word "Urfriede" is masculine in all editions.

2) "hat" is missing in the Wittenberg and in the Jena.

If your sovereign wanted to use it, or if he ordered you to go to war, then you are obliged to strike freshly and confidently, and it is no longer your fist or sword, but subject to the authorities; and now you do not do it yourself, but your sovereign, who is commanded to do it by God. So we also say in the same fills. As if it came about that a treaty and agreement should be made with our enemies or Turks, then emperor and princes would well give and take an oath, both, whether the Turk swears by the devil or his Mahomet, whom he considers his God and worships, as we worship our Lord Christ and swear by him. Now you have a reason why it is right to swear, namely, the need to take an oath out of obedience to the authorities, to confirm the truth, or to make an agreement for the sake of peace and unity.

The other cause is love, although it is not demanded by the authorities, but is done for the benefit of the neighbor, just as love is angry and punishes when it sees the neighbor sin or err, as Christ teaches Matth. 18, 15. Demi it can ever not laugh at it, nor praise the evil. So I may well show love to another woman, if she is in distress or danger, that I help her out; this is not a carnal, forbidden, but a Christian, brotherly love, which does not go out of my own lust or forwardness, but because my neighbor needs it, and has God's word for it, which says: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself" [3 Mos. 19, 18.].

230 Therefore, when I see someone in spiritual distress and distress, weak in faith, or of a despondent conscience, or of an erroneous mind, and the like, I should not only comfort him, but also swear to strengthen his conscience, saying: As truly as God lives and Christ died, so surely is this the truth and the word of God. The oath is so necessary that one cannot do without it. For by it the right doctrine is confirmed, the erroneous and stupid conscience is instructed and comforted, and loosed from the devil. Therefore you may swear here as high and as dear as you can. So Christ and

St. Paul swore and led God's name to witness. So an oath belongs to any urging word or promise, so a Christian preacher preaches, both to frighten the hard heads and to comfort the stupid.

Likewise, when one is to excuse one's neighbor and save his honor against evil, poisonous mouths, one may also say, "One is doing him wrong in the sight of God. For all this is God's name well used, for God's honor and truth, and the neighbor's salvation and blessedness. For there you have God's word and commandment hovering over you, which calls you to love your neighbor, to punish the disorderly, to comfort the afflicted. And because it is in the commandment, it cannot be wrong; indeed, the very thing urges you to swear, and to do wrong if you fail to do so.

232. summa, where you have God's word, God grant you mercy, so that you may swear quickly, punish, be angry, and do everything you can. But what is above and beyond that, not by command, nor for the neighbor's need or benefit, you shall do none of these. For God does not want anything everywhere that you do on your own initiative, without his word, no matter what it may be, even if someone could raise the dead. Much less does he want to suffer that one misuses his name to invoke it where it is neither necessary nor useful, or that one goes astray with it every day in the Hanseatic League and in all places, as one does now, since one swears to every word, mostly in taverns 1), that it would be necessary that such things be strictly defended and punished. So you have a correct, clear understanding of this piece, so that one does not torture oneself in vain over this text, and make a purgatory out of it, which is none.

233 Christ says: "I tell you that you should not swear by heaven, nor by earth, nor by the city of Jerusalem. etc. There one sees that this 2) city was held in high esteem and honor, that one swore by it. And he 3) also confirms it, and calls it a city.

1) Erlanger: "Beer houses".

2) Erlanger: "the"; the "is" that follows immediately is missing in the Wittenberger.

3) "he" is missing in the Wittenberger.

God, and otherwise it is also called the holy city [Matth. 4, 5]. But it is called holy because God's word was there, and God dwelt there through it. And it is a fine way, and undoubtedly brought about by excellent people, that the city was held so high (as the prophet Isaiah also gloriously praises it) not for its own sake, but for the sake of the Word. Accordingly, any city that has God's word may be called holy, and may boast that God is certainly there.

234 But that he saith, Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black, is spoken of his creature, not of our custom. For he does not mean to say that hair cannot be powdered to make it black or any other color, but that it is not in our power to make a single hair white or black, nor to prevent it from becoming otherwise or so. But if it is grown, it can be shaved off or burned, just as other things can be changed to some extent by other creatures, but nothing can be done to make them otherwise or so. Thus he makes our own head a sanctuary, as it is not our work nor our power, but God's gift and creature.

235) That he now decides: "Your speech should be: Yes, Yes, No, No," etc., he speaks clearly to those who have no command or need to swear. For, as [§228] said, for oneself one should not swear at all. But when the two things are added, command or necessity, it is no longer called swearing for oneself, for you do it not for your own sake, but for the sake of him who requires it of you, as your authority, or your neighbor's necessity, and God's command.

V. 38-41 You have heard that it was said, "An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. But I say unto you, resist not evil: but if any man smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if any man will be right with thee, and take thy skirt, let him have thy coat also. And if any man trouble thee a mile, go with him two.

This text has also given rise to a great deal of questioning and error on the part of all teachers who did not know how to separate the two parts, the temporal and the spiritual, or the kingdom of Christ and the kingdom of the world. For where the two are mixed together, and not divided purely and finely, no right understanding can ever remain in Christianity, as I have often said and proved. Now we have heard nothing else so far, except that Christ preaches against the Pharisees, who deceived the people, both with doctrine and life, and misinterpreted and perverted God's commandment, so that they became false saints, as they still do. For one always finds among the preachers some (if not all) such Jewish saints, who teach no more than about sin and godliness in outward works.

237 As he has punished and rejected their doctrine and false interpretation in the previous plays, so here he also takes before him the play that is written in the law of Moses, for those who are commanded to lead the regiment and authority, and to punish with the sword, that they should and must take an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth; so that they sin just as grievously, where they do not need such a commanded sword and punishment, as the others, who take the sword themselves without command, and take revenge. Just as in the previous plays, he who does not live and remain with his wife, who is given to him in marriage, sins just as much as he who lives with another woman out of wedlock. This they had also now reversed, and made a mixture, that they drew this text, which is only given to the authorities, for themselves, and thus interpreted: that also each one for himself might well seek vengeance and take an eye for an eye etc., However, just as they had also mixed it among themselves in other pieces, and had drawn to themselves the anger that is due and commanded to the authorities; item, the desire or lust outside of marriage; likewise also the swearing, outside of necessity and love, drawn to their frivolity and other abuses.

238 Therefore Christ comes, and puts down such perverse, false delusion and understanding, leaving the authorities their right and office.

He teaches his Christians as individual people, apart from the office and regiment, how they should live for their own person, so that they do not desire revenge, and so skillfully, if someone strikes them on one cheek, that they are ready, if necessary, to offer the other, and not only abstain from revenge with the fist, but also in the heart, with thoughts and all their strength. Finally, he wants to have such a heart, which is not impatient, vengeful, nor peaceable. Now this is another righteousness, for they taught and kept, and yet wanted to adorn themselves from Moses, that one might well want to avenge and defend oneself where violence was done to one, because there it says in the text: "An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth" etc.

239 Now many people have quarreled over this saying, and not only the Jews but also the Christians themselves have taken offense at it. For they thought it too severe and too hard, that one should not resist evil at all, because we must have justice and punishment among us. And some have set against it the example of Christ, John 18:22, 23, when he was beaten on one cheek before Annas the priest, 1) and yet did not offer the other, but answered for his innocence, and punished the priest's servants, which seems to be contrary to this text. Therefore they said that it was not necessary to offer the thug the outside cheek, and thus helped this text that it was enough that one was prepared in the heart to offer the outside as well. This is not wrongly said, but it is not rightly understood. For they think that this means to offer the other cheeks, that one says to the beater: See, there you have this cheek also, and beat me another time; or that one throws the skirt also to the one who wants to take the coat. If that were the opinion, then one would have to throw everything, finally also house and yard, woman and child after it. Therefore we say that nothing more is preached here than that every Christian should be willing and patient to suffer what he should and must suffer, and not seek revenge or strike back.

240. nevertheless the question remains here

1) Jenaer: was.

and disputation, whether one must suffer all kinds of things from everyone, and in no case be allowed to defend oneself; also not to quarrel or complain in court, nor to speak and demand one's own? For if such things were forbidden, it would become a strange thing that one would have to suffer everyone's willfulness and iniquity, and no one could stay ahead of the other, nor keep anything, and so in the end no regiment would remain.

To answer this, you must always keep in mind the main point, that Christ preaches for his Christians alone, and wants to teach them what kind of people they should be, against the fleshly delusion and thought that was still in the apostles at that time, that they thought he would set up a new reign and empire, and set them up to rule like lords, and bring their enemies and the evil world under them. As flesh and blood always desires and seeks in the gospel that it may have its rule, honor and benefit, and suffer nothing. This is also what the pope sought, and he brought about such a regime that his being became a righteous worldly rule, and was so feared that all the world had to be subject to him.

242 So now we also see that all the world seeks its own interests in the Gospel, and so many rascals arise from it, who have nothing else in mind than how they raise themselves up and make themselves masters, and dampen others. As Muenzer began with his peasants, and, after him, others have also proven themselves. In addition, the right Christians are also challenged when they see that things are so bad in the world, even in their own government, that they would like to take hold of it and rule it themselves. But let it not be, and let no one think that God would have us rule and reign with worldly law and punishment, but let the Christians' nature be entirely separated from this, so that they neither worry about it nor have anything to do with it, but let those take care who are commanded how to distribute goods, how to act, how to punish, how to protect, etc., and let them go as they do; as Christ teaches [Matt. 22:21]: "Give to Caesar the things that are Caesar's." For we are placed in another, higher being, which is a divine, eternal kingdom, there

There is no need of things that belong to the world, but each one is Lord in Christ, both over the devil and the world, etc. as is said elsewhere.

243 Those who belong to the same earthly government should and must have law and punishment, and must order and divide it according to class, person, and property, so that everything is in order, and 1) everyone knows what he should do and have; and no one interferes with another's office, nor interferes with others, nor takes what is theirs. This includes lawyers, who are to teach such things and keep them in mind. The gospel, however, has nothing to do with this, but teaches how the heart is to stand before God, and how it is to be skillful in all this, so that it remains pure and does not fall into false righteousness. Take this difference and notice it well, as the reason for the matter, according to which one can easily answer such questions, so that you may see what Christ is talking about and who the people are to whom he is preaching, namely, spiritual nature and life, and for his Christians how they should live and conduct themselves before God and in the world, so that the heart may cling to God, and not take any interest in worldly rule, nor in any authority, violence, punishment, wrath, or revenge.

244 If it be asked now, Whether a Christian also ought to do justice 2) or to defend himself etc.? answer badly, and say, No. For a Christian is such a person, or man, as hath nothing to do with such a worldly being and right, and is in such a kingdom or regiment, where nothing else ought to go but as we pray, "Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us." There shall be love and service one to another, even toward them that love us not, but are enemies, and do violence and wrong etc. Therefore he tells them not to resist evil, and so not to seek revenge, but to turn the other cheek to him who strikes them etc.

245 Thereafter, there is another question: whether a Christian may also be a worldly man, and lead the regiment or law office and work, so that the two persons or two

1) Erlanger: and a.

2) Wittenberger: rechen. Latin: juäieio contsuäsrs.

What is the name of a vain worldly person, because they belong to the worldly regime? Then we say: Yes. For God Himself has ordered and established such worldly rule and distinction, confirmed and praised it by His word. For without it this life could not exist, and all three of us 1) were conceived in it, even born in it, before we became Christians. Therefore we must also remain in it as long as we walk on earth, but only according to the outward, bodily life and nature.

Therefore it is not possible, a Christian must be some kind of worldly person, because he is, at least with body and goods, under the emperor; but for his own person, according to the Christian life, he is only under Christ, and not the emperor's nor any other man's; and yet by heart he is thrown under him and bound together, if he is in a state or office, has house and farm, wife and child; for such are all the emperor's. Therefore he should and must do what he is called to do, and what such an external life demands, and would do wrong if he had house, wife, child, and servants, and would not nourish them or protect them where necessary. And it does not apply that he would pretend to be a Christian and would have to leave everything or have it taken away from him etc., but it is said: You are now in the emperor's regiment, since you are not called a Christian, but a father, lord, prince etc. A Christian you are for your person; but against your child, servants, subjects 2) etc. you are another person, and you are obliged to protect them.

247 See, so now we speak of a Christian in relatione, not as a Christian, but bound in this life to another person, whom he has under him, or above him, or also next to him, as master, wife, wife, child, neighbor, etc. since one owes it to the other to defend, protect and shield where he can. Therefore, 3) it would not be right to teach one to hold out one's cheek and to throw away one's skirt for a cloak.

1) Wittenberger and Erlanger: inside.

2) Instead of: "child, servants, subjects" ... "they", the Erlanger has: "servant" ... "him".

3) "it" is missing in the Erlanger.

For that would be just fooled, as they say of a mad saint, who let himself eat the lice, and did not want to kill any, for the sake of this text, pretended that one had to suffer and not resist evil.

If you are a prince, judge, lord, or woman, etc., and have people under you, and want to know what belongs to you, you must not ask Christ, but ask the emperor, or your law of the land, which will tell you how you should behave against your subjects and protect them. For there you have power and right, both to defend and punish, as far as your regiment or office and command reaches; but not as a Christian, but as the emperor's subject. What a foolish mother would be, who would not protect and save her child from a dog or wolf, and then say: A Christian should not defend himself. 4) Should they not be taught with good blows, and say: If you are a mother, do what is your mother's right, which is commanded you, and which Christ did not take away, but rather confirmed?

That is why one reads of many holy martyrs, who even under unbelieving emperors and lords went to war, when they were summoned, and 5) confidently struck out and murdered like others, that in this there was no difference between Christians and pagans; and yet they did not go against this text. For they did it not as Christians, for their own person, but as obedient members and subjects, bound to worldly person and government. But if you are free and unattached to such a worldly rule, you have another rule here, as another person.

Therefore learn well the difference between the two persons, which a Christian must bear at the same time on earth, because he lives among other people, and must use the world's and the emperor's goods, as well as the Gentiles. For he has the same blood and flesh, which he must receive, not from the spiritual government, but from the field and land, which is the emperor's, until he also bodily comes out of this life into another. Where now such with good difference

4) Wittenberger: "Should a Christian fight back?"

5) "and" is missing in the Wittenberger.

When you have understood how far a Christian and a worldly person are stretched, then you can finely word all such sayings and apply them correctly, so that the two are not mixed and blended together, as the pope did with his teaching and rule.

251 Now let this be said of such a person who is bound to other persons under secular law, which is called father's, mother's, master's and woman's law etc. But how, if it concerns your person alone, that one does you harm and injustice, whether it also applies that one resists and protects oneself by force? Answer: No. For here secular and imperial law itself teaches: Striking again causes strife, and whoever strikes again is 1) wronged. For in doing so, he interferes with the judge, whose duty it is to punish, and deprives him of his right. As in other cases, if someone steals or robs from you, it is not your duty to steal or rob from him again and take by force. But we are usually so clever that we have smelled ourselves before we look around. But it shall not be so.

252 If you do not want to or cannot bear it, you may go with him before the judge and execute your right there. For he will allow you to demand and take justice in a proper way, only that you look on and do not have a revengeful heart. Just as a judge may punish and kill, and yet it is forbidden that he have neither hatred nor revenge in his heart; as it commonly happens that one abuses his office to atone for his own willfulness. But if this does not happen, and you alone seek to protect and stop yourself with justice against violence and wrongdoing, not to avenge yourself 4) or to harm your neighbor, you do no wrong; for where the heart is pure, everything is right and well done. But it is yearly, because the world is evil in flesh and blood, and always seeks its own, and yet adorns itself with such appearances, and covers the mischief.

1) Wittenberger: has.

2) Jenaer: "kanstu". "du" is missing in the Wittenberg and the Erlanger.

3) Wittenberger: "gir" instead of: Revengefulness.

4) Wittenberger: "rechenen".

So it is not forbidden to go to court and complain of injustice, Violence 2c, if only the heart is not wrong, but is patient as before, and does so only to keep it above what is right, and not to give way to what is wrong, and to do it out of a right love of justice. As I have given an example above [§ 90] of St. Joseph, who accused his brothers before their father, when they had done wrong, and had cried foul; and for this reason he is praised, because he did not do it out of an evil heart, so that he would betray them, or have a desire to make trouble, as they began to do, and therefore made enemies of him, but out of a kind, brotherly heart, for their good. For he did not like to see them get a bad rap; that it could not be called revenge sought or evil grudged, but rather helped for the best, and suffered that they put on him all mischievousness [Gen. 37, 2. ff].

254 Thus we also read in the Gospel Matth. 18, 23. ff. in the parable of the servant to whom his master had forgiven all his debts, and he would not forgive a small debt to his fellow servant, that the other servants were greatly grieved, and complained of this to the Lord, not because they were avenging themselves or rejoicing in his misfortune, But kept their hearts and mouths quiet, so that they did not curse or slander others, but brought it before the Lord, to whom it belonged to be punished, and sought justice, but with a fine Christian heart, as such persons who were bound to their Lord to be faithful. How it should and must go, be it in a Hanse or city, where a pious, faithful servant or subject sees another do wrong or harm to his lord, that he may show it to him and prevent his harm. Likewise, a pious citizen, if he sees violence and harm done to his neighbor, to help save and defend himself. These are all worldly actions that Christ did not forbid, but rather confirmed.

For this must not and should not be, that one should leave room and cause for every one's will to be courageous, and be silent about it, and do nothing about it, if it can be properly defended and occurred;

even though we should and must suffer without it, where injustice and violence are done to us. For one must not approve of injustice, but bear witness to the truth, and may well plead the right against violence and iniquity, as Christ Himself pleaded the right before the high priest 1) Annas, and nevertheless suffered that He was beaten, and offered not only the other cheek, but the whole body [John 18:22 ff].

256. Behold, then, you have a fine, clear instruction, how one is to proceed rightly in the two, that one may not use the extensive and dangerous glosses, which one has hitherto sought; only that one may divide it rightly, and not draw it into one another, so that it may go both ways, and yet each remain in its circle; That is, so that a Christian may conduct all kinds of worldly affairs without sin, not as a Christian, but as a worldly person, and yet keep his heart pure in his Christianity, as Christ demands; which the world cannot do, but abuses all worldly order and law, yes, all creatures, contrary to God's command.

Thus, if a Christian goes to war, or sits in judgment, and punishes or sues his neighbor, he does so not as a Christian, but as a warrior, judge, lawyer etc. But nevertheless he keeps a Christian heart, who desires no one to do evil, and would be sorry that harm should come to his neighbor; and thus at the same time lives 2) as a Christian toward everyone, who suffers all kinds of things for himself in the world, and yet also, as a worldly person, holds, needs, and does all kinds of things that land or city law, civil law, and domestic law demand. Summa, a Christian, as a Christian, lives none of the things that are seen in him in this outward life. For all this belongs to the imperial regiment, which Christ does not want to overthrow, nor to teach that one should run away and leave the world or his office and position, but rather need its regiment and order, and remain connected to it, and yet live within another regiment, which is nothing everywhere.

1) Erlanger: Priest.

2) "At the same time" is missing in the Wittenberg; instead: "against everyone equally".-Erlanger: "at the same time against everyone equally".

The new version of the book is a good example of this.

258 So now we come to the text with such a difference, and go through all these pieces, namely, that a Christian should not resist any evil; again, a worldly person should resist all evil, as far as his office goes. As a householder shall not suffer his household to set themselves against him, or to smite one another etc. In the same way, a Christian should not be on the right side of anyone, but should let go of both his coat and his robe if they are taken from him. But a worldly person shall protect himself with his right hand and defend himself where he can, against violence and iniquity. Summa, in Christ's kingdom it is said: suffer all kinds of things, forgive, and repay good for evil. Again, in the emperor's regiment, one should not suffer injustice, but defend against evil and punish it, and help protect and preserve the right, which is required of every office or position.

259 But sayest thou, Yea, Christ hath said here in plain words, Ye shall not resist evil, which is but a bare saying, as if it were indeed forbidden? Answer: Yes, see also to whom he speaks such things. For he does not say that one should not resist evil at all, for that would be to abolish all rule and authority; but he says this: You, you should not do it. What are these "you"? They are called Christ's disciples, whom he teaches how to live for themselves apart from worldly rule. For to be a Christian is another thing (as has been said enough) than to have and hold a worldly office or position. Therefore he will say: He who is in the worldly government, let him resist evil, do justice and punish, as the lawyers and lawyers teach; but to you, as my disciples, whom I teach, not how you should govern externally, but how you should live before God, I say: "You should not resist evil," but suffer all kinds of things, and have a pure, kind heart toward those who do you wrong or violence. And if they take away your skirt, that you seek not revenge, but leave your cloak for it, where you cannot help it.

But he sets two ways by which one is wronged or his own is taken away. First, by sheer force

474 Erl. 43, 142-145. interpretation of the 5. 6. and 7. cap. Matthäi. W. VII, WA-7M. 475

and iniquity, as when a man strikes you on the mouth, or robs you publicly, and does not ask the law about it; that is, he gives you a cheek. On the other hand, if it is not called public violence, but is done with the appearance and expedient of justice, as when someone seeks a cause against you in court, as if he had good right against you, that he should wrest from you what is yours. That is, Christ's skirt is taken from you in court, since you are denied what is yours, and so you must suffer both innocent injustice, and yet be guilty of it, as if you were unjust etc. Not that the law should do thee harm or violence, which is set to protect the pious, but that peelers and knaves sit in judgment and are in office, that they should do justice, and yet, where they cannot do thee violence, they bend and bend it, and abuse it to their own will. As the world can do masterfully and does daily, nothing is now so mean as to make injustice out of right, and right out of injustice with all kinds of devious plots and strange intrigues.

261 But most of all this happens to devout Christians, to whom the world is hostile without, and has a desire to put on all plagues. For this reason Christ tells them beforehand to take care of themselves in the world and to be devoted to suffering, especially if it is for the sake of the things for which they are Christians, that is, for the sake of the gospel and the spiritual government, so that they will wait for all the tricks and let everything go. For otherwise we must suffer, because as individuals we have no power, nor can we defend ourselves against the authorities who set themselves against us. Otherwise, if this is not the case, and you can protect and defend yourself by law, so that no violence is done to you or yours, then you are doing the right thing, and you owe it.

V. 42. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants you tomorrow.

262 He shows three things that the Christians should suffer in temporal goods: that they let them take, gladly lend, and give. The scribes 1) taught no further than the law of the world and of Caesar, which is the law of the world.

1) Erlanger: "they" instead of: "the scribes".

does not mean you to give what is yours to others, nor to let it be taken from you, but teaches you to handle and act with your goods, so that you take the same in return by buying, selling, exchanging etc. 2) Now Christ preaches nothing of this, but lets it go, as reason teaches, how one should divide goods and act etc. But he shows what a Christian is to have above all this, namely, the threefold thing, that he let him take, whether by force or by the appearance of right. Item, that he give gladly, and also lend gladly.

For this reason, we must divide the secular law and the teachings of Christ. According to worldly law, you may well need your goods, trade with them, buy and sell, as one reads of the holy patriarchs, that they traded and dealt with money and goods, like other people, as it must be, who wants to live among the people, nourish wife and child, etc. For everything belongs to it, that the belly has its right, and is just as necessary as food and drink.

But Christ teaches you that in all these things you should nevertheless be willing to let yourself be taken, even to do good or to give, and also to lend where you can, and to suffer violence, not only with goods, but also with your body and life, as was said in the previous text; and especially everything for the sake of the Lord Christ, where it is desired of you because of the gospel that you should not only give up your skirt, but also your coat, not only your goods and honor, but also your body and life. For in such a case there is no doubt. Nor can any other case occur. For in other cases, which belong to worldly affairs and government, you have judge and right, where injustice or violence happens to you, whom you can call upon and take to help you. But if you cannot obtain justice or protection, you must also suffer it, just as unbelievers must suffer it.

But here we must also be careful not to leave room for scoundrels and boys who want to help themselves to the doctrine and pretend: Christians must suffer all sorts of things,

2) "u. s. w." is missing in the Wittenberg.

Therefore one may confidently reach into their goods, take and steal; and a Christian must be obliged with all that he has to sit there with any bold boy, so that everything is open to him, and must give or lend him as much as he wants to have, and not demand again etc. How the shameful, renegade emperor Julianus mocked with this text, and took from the Christians what he wanted, pretending: he wanted to play their own right with them. No, dear fellow, it is not so. It is true that Christians should be ready to suffer all kinds of things; but if you come before the judge, or into the executioner's hand, see what he will suffer from you? A Christian must wait to suffer what befalls him from you and from everyone else; but he is not obliged to allow you to be ruthless and to leave room for it where he can defend himself with justice and by the help of the authorities. And even if he does not want to protect the authorities or even uses force himself, he should not keep quiet about it as if he had to approve it.

266 So also here, whether he should gladly lend and give to anyone who asks him; but where he knows that a knave is, he is not obliged to give to him. For Christ does not say to me that I should give what is mine to every man, and deprive those who are mine and others who may have it, whom I am obliged to help without it, and after that I myself should lack and burden others. For he does not say that one should give and lend to anyone, but to the one who asks us, as he is in need of it, etc. not to the one who willfully wants to take it away, as those who otherwise have it well, or who wants to feed himself without work with other people's burden. Therefore, one should look at this and know what kind of people one would have in a city, who would be poor and without means, or not, and not allow any boy or runner, who has no need, and could feed himself well. For the same Junker Unrath is now going astray everywhere in the country, who want to make use of this doctrine, and with it eat and splurge on other people's property, and beat everything through it, and thus strike out from one place to the next. Such people should be sent to Master

1) "shall" is missing in the Erlanger.

The people of the city are the ones who have to be instructed and taught otherwise, so that they do not have to betray the good people of their courage.

267/ St. Paul also teaches this in 2 Cor. 8, 2, when he himself seeks a tax from the Corinthians for the poor Christians in the time of trouble, that it should not be done in the opinion that others should have rest and they should have tribulation, that is, that they should have trouble and work, and themselves suffer lack, that others should have good courage from theirs; and 2 Thess. 3, 6. ff. he commands Christians to abstain from those who walk disorderly, but to work every man with a quiet mind, to eat his own bread, and not to afflict others; and concludes that he who will not work shall not eat. Therefore, let him who is able to work know that this is God's commandment, that he should do something to nourish himself and not be a burden to others. For those who need it are enough without that, that one nevertheless has enough to lend and give; as the Scripture says Deut. 15, 11 [Matth. 26, 11]: There will always be poor in your country. For we should not lend and give in such a way that we throw it to the wind and do not see to whom we give it, but should open our eyes beforehand to see who he is, whether he is peton (as Christ says here), that 2) he is in need, and ask rightly? or whether he is a tempter or a knave?

268 Now your worldly person belongs to you, so that you are wise here, because you live among the people, and know the poor, and see what you get for people, and to whom you should give or not. If then thou seest that there is a right bitter man, open thine hand, and lend or borrow to him, if he be able to restore it thee. But if he cannot, give it to him, and make a mark in the register. As there are pious people who would gladly feed themselves with wife and children, and work, and yet will not do it, come here and there into debt and mischief; for whom also every city shall have its common treasury and alms, and ecclesiastics, who shall see who such are, and how they live, etc. that they may not be called to the

2) Erlanger: "d. i. ob."

lazy strings leave room for people to complain.

V. 43-48. Ye have heard that it is said, 1) Thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; that ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven. For he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. For if ye love them that love you, what reward have ye? Do not the tax collectors do the same? And if you are only kind to your brothers, what special thing will you do? Do not the tax collectors do the same? Therefore be ye perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

269 This saying, which Christ indicates here, is not found in one place in the Old Testament, but from time to time in the fifth book of Moses, about their enemies, the Gentiles around, as Moab, Ammon, Amalek. And even though it does not say that they should hate their enemies, it follows from this when he says, Deut. 23:3 ff, that they should never do good to the Ammonites and Moabites and other enemies of theirs, nor wish them happiness or salvation etc. Truly, the Jews were allowed a great deal and were given a wide berth, and they were well wrapped up in it. But as in others, they did not understand this rightly, but went too far, and abused it to all their power. Therefore Christ interprets it differently here, and shows them the right understanding of the law, which they left aside, and instead drew out such sayings, which seemed to be for them, that they confirmed their deeds with it.

(270) Now here let us understand the difference: first, that he alone speaks what Christians, as Christians, should do, especially for the sake of the gospel and their Christianity. If anyone hates, envies, blasphemes, or persecutes me for the sake of Christ and the kingdom of heaven, I should not hate, persecute, blaspheme, and curse again, but should love, do good, and bless.

1) "da" is missing in the Erlanger.

and pray for him. For a Christian is such a man, who knows no hatred nor enmity against anyone, has no wrath nor revenge in his heart, but only love, gentleness and goodness; just as our Lord Christ and his heavenly Father is himself, whom he also sets as an example here.

2/1 The question now is: What shall we say to the fact that we often read in the Scriptures that the holy people also cursed their enemies, even Christ himself and his apostles? Does this mean to love and bless the enemies? Or, how can I love the pope, whom I reproach and curse daily, and also cheaply? Answer to the most simple: I have often said that the ministry of preaching is not our ministry, but God's. But what is God's is not our ministry. But what is God's, we do not do, but He Himself through the word and ministry, as His own gift 2) and creature. 3) Now it is written, Joh. 16, 8, that the ministry and work of the Holy Spirit is to punish the world; but if he is to punish it, he cannot pretend to it or call it a minister of grace and say what it likes to hear, but must rebuke it and accost it, as Christ, Matth. 23, 13. ff, cries woe to his Pharisees, and St. Paul cries woe to Elymas, Acts. 13, 10: "Thou devil's child, full of all mischievousness," etc., and St. Stephen also, Apost. 7, 51 ff, reads a harsh and sharp text to the chief priests; and especially St. Paul, Gal. 1, 8, pours it out in a heap and calls them all anathema, that is, banished and cursed, and put into the abyss of hell, who do not teach the pure doctrine of faith.

Behold, thus does the word of God touch the whole world; it takes both lords and rulers and every man in the mouth; it reproves and curses all their conduct, which is not fitting for me and you, as individual Christians, apart from the ministry and the doctrine. So in the other Psalm, v. 10 ff, David may come and tell all kings and rulers to think and humble themselves, and to fall under the teaching of Christ, to be punished and taught otherwise, or in short, to be damned to the devil. I should not do that; but God's word goes thus, thunders

2) Wittenberger: Thing.

3) Erlanger: Business.

and flashes, and storms against great, mighty mountains, and strikes that it smokes, shatters everything that is great, proud, disobedient, as Psalm 2S, 3. ff. says; and again, as a fruitful rain soothes and moistens, plants and strengthens what is dull and sick, as poor, arid plants.

273 Now if anyone will go forth and bite at himself with cursing and scolding, not as a teacher and preacher who is commanded 1) to speak God's word, he does wrong. But he who is commanded to such an office should and must do it; and also does wrong if he neglects it, or does not open his mouth confidently out of fear, and punishes what is to be punished without regard to the person. As we must now say to our bishops that they are tyrants and evil-doers, who publicly act against God and right with all outrage and courage. For I do this not of my own accord, but because of my office; otherwise, for my own part, I should neither wish nor say evil to any man on earth, but again, wish, speak and do all good to everyone. For I am not so hostile to the pope, bishops and all enemies who persecute us and inflict all plagues. What God gives them in the way of temporal goods, power and honor, I sincerely grant them, and would gladly help them to obtain them, and even more gladly grant them that they might also be rich in spiritual goods, in which we are, and have no lack; and it would be our heartfelt joy if we could bring them here with our life and limb, and rescue and save them from their blindness and the devil's power.

But because they do not want the bad, nor can they suffer or accept anything good that we offer them, we must also let them go, and say: If it should be that one of them should perish, God's word and Christ's kingdom, or the pope with all of his bunch, then he had better go into the abyss of hell, in his God's name, the devil's name, so that only God's word remains. If I should bless and praise one thing, or curse and condemn another, I bless the word of God, and curse them with all that they have.

1) "is" is missing in the Erlanger.

For I must take God's word above all things, and life and limb, 2) the world's favor, goods, honor and all salvation, 3) that I may receive the same, and remain with Christ as my highest treasure in heaven and earth. For one thing must happen to the two, that either God's word remains, and they are added to it, or, if they do not want grace and good things and all salvation, they should not suppress it.

Thus a Christian may easily direct himself in the matter, that he may keep himself both against enemy and friend. Friend, and love everyone, bless etc. where it concerns the neighbor's person. But besides this, as far as God and his word are concerned, let nothing happen too near, but put it above and before everything, put everything above it, regard no one, whether friend or foe, as this is not our business, nor our neighbor's, but God's own business, whom we owe to obey above all things. Therefore I say to my worst enemies: As far as my person is concerned, I will gladly help you and do you all the good I can, even if you are an enemy to me and do evil; but as far as God's word is concerned, you must not wait for friendship or love, so that I will do against it, even if you are my closest and best friend; but because you do not want to suffer the same, I will say such a prayer and blessing over you: That God forbid thee, and put thee to shame. 4) Gladly will I serve thee; but not to overthrow the word of God, that thou shouldest not bring me, nor be able, to give thee a drink of water. Summa, people are to be loved and served, but God above all things; that where one wants to hinder or resist the same [love and service towards God], there neither love nor service is valid anymore. For it is said: You shall love your enemy and do good; but I must also be an enemy to God's enemies, so that I do not run against God with them.

276) Now he has also refuted 5) this piece against the delusion of the Jews, who turned their noses up at the Scriptures as if they would like to give their

2) The words "body and life" are in the Wittenberg after "honor.

3) Wittenberger: set.

4) Erlanger: "that God may smite thee to the earths."

8) "nun" is missing in the Wittenberg. ,

The law declared that they should not have any enemy at all, although Moses had said that they should not have and make friends with some foreign nations, which God had specially chosen as his enemies, not them. But that they themselves considered as enemies those whom they wanted, and cursed, persecuted and tormented them, that was not Moses' opinion. For Solomon also, when he understood and interpreted Moses aright, saith thus [Proverbs 25:21], "If thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, water him." Which saying is also indicated by St. Paul Rom. 12, 20. For "to hate thine enemy" belongs to a common person and office, by God; but the commandment, "Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself," goes over the common multitude, and every one through and through.

But behold how high he sets his purpose, not only to punish those who do evil to their enemies, but also not to let those be righteous who leave it to them to do good where they may. For he says first, "Love your enemies." But to love means to bear a good heart and to grant all good things, to be kind from the heart, 1) to be kind and sweet to everyone, not to laugh at his harm or misfortune.

278 Likewise, when he says, "Bless them that curse you," etc. he wills that no evil word be spoken against them, though they reproach, blaspheme, profane, and curse us most grievously, but that they speak and desire good things. This is where the Christian word comes from, which some pious people use when they hear that someone has wronged them, or that they have done something wrong, so that they say: God forgive him! as a lamentation and out of compassion, desiring no more than that he not be harmed before God. That is, a good tongue against other evil tongues, so that both mouth and heart show vain love.

279 Then, thirdly, he wills that such a heart should be shown also in works, and in all kindness and goodness, saying, "Do good to them that hate you.

1) Erlanger: and.

But this is a strange virtue, and such a doctrine, which truly does not serve the world at all, and is quite impossible to nature, that Ulaan should give and pour out all good for all kinds of evil, and not let any evil or shameful ingratitude overcome him; but overcome and curb evil with good, as St. Paul says [Rom. 12:21]. For this reason he has previously commanded that whoever desires to be a disciple of Christ and enter the kingdom of heaven must have a different and better righteousness than the Pharisees and the Jewish saints.

The fourth part, "Pray for those who insult and persecute you," is more about our doctrine and faith than about our person and life. For their persecuting us is because of God's word, that they may be right and we may be wrong. It is part of this that we should ask and command God, because we cannot find justice or a judge on earth. And because we see that those who persecute us not only attack us, but also God Himself, and reach into His kingdom, and do the greatest harm not to us, but to themselves, and have fallen into God's wrath and judgment, we should have more mercy on them, and pray for them, that they may come out of blindness and terrible judgment. For no one can do us any harm; he must first have done it to a greater Lord, namely, to the high Majesty in heaven.

281 But this also in such a way that it goes outside the office and does not hinder it, so that, as I have always said, one may well distinguish the teaching that concerns each person in general from the teaching that belongs to those who are in office, whether spiritual or secular, which has its work that it must punish and ward off evil. Therefore, even if they are benevolent in themselves, justice and punishment, as the work of their office, must also go. And would it not be right for them, as a matter of mercy, to let it stand, for that would help, strengthen, and give place to evil. As if I were to say to our enemies, pope, bishops, princes, and whoever they are, who persecute and trample underfoot the gospel and the poor people who are attached to it: Dear lords,

Praise God, you are pious people and holy fathers etc., or wanted to be silent, and worship them, or kiss their feet. No, dear brother, so it is said: I am a preacher, who shall have teeth in his mouth, bite and salt, and tell them the truth; and if they will not hear, put them under ban, shut up heaven, 1) decree hellish fire, and give it to the devil for God's sake etc.

282 Therefore he that hath this office to punish, to reprove, let him do it; but apart from the office let every man keep this doctrine, that thou neither reprove nor curse, but wish and shew all good, though he do evil, and so put away the punishment from thee, and command them that have the office. For he will surely find his judge, who will not give it to him, even if you do not take revenge or seek revenge. For God does not want to leave unpunished any will to be brave, but He Himself will take revenge on our enemies and send them back what they deserve from us; as He Himself says [Deut. 32, 35]: "Vengeance is Mine, I will repay." From this St. Paul exhorts Christians, Rom. 12, 19: "Do not avenge yourselves, but give place to the wrath of God." With which words he not only teaches, but also comforts. As if he wanted to say, "Do not refrain from avenging one another, cursing one another, and wishing evil on one another; for he who does you harm or damage encroaches on an office that is not his, as he who refrains from punishing you or doing you harm without command, even against God's command. If you also do this, you are also encroaching on God's office, and you sin against Him as grievously as he does.

Therefore keep your fist still, and give room to his wrath and punishment, and let him do as he will not leave it unsmelled, and punish more severely than you may desire. For he has not touched you, but much higher God Himself, and has already fallen into His wrath, from which he will not escape; as no one has yet escaped from Him. Why then will you be angry, because God's wrath, which is immeasurably greater and heavier than all the wrath and punishment of the world, has already come upon him, and has already risen higher.

1) Erlanger: and.

Why do you want to curse and avenge him so much, because you see that he is in such a heavy sentence, that you should rather have mercy on him and pray for him that you may avenge him? 2) Why then do you want to curse and avenge much, because you see that he lies in such heavy judgment, that you should rather have mercy on his misery, and pray for him that he may come out and mend his ways? etc.

284 And to confirm this doctrine, and to make it appear, he gives two examples: first, that he says, "That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven. etc. As if he should say: If you want to be called true children of the Father in heaven, let his example move you, so that you also live and do like him. But how does he do? "He makes his sun rise daily, and rain, both on the righteous and the wicked." There he has summarized in short words all the benefits that God shows to the world on earth, when he sets the two pieces: The sun, and the rain. For if the two or the one of them were not, the whole world would have long been desolate, corrupted and passed away. If the sun did not go out every day, it would not be possible to work a day, but all animals, trees, herbs and grass would perish from frost. Therefore the sun alone gives the benefit (of which the world is full, and cannot pay), that all, animal and man, can seek its food, and in addition heat and warmth, that it remains alive, grows, increases, and does not perish. Summa, it is not to be counted, what God gives every hour and moment through the sun for benefit. Yes, where is someone who recognizes such things or gives thanks for them?

But although God gives, creates and sustains everything through the sun, we must also have the rain. For if it were always raining, everything would wither and pine away from the heat, and no food or grain could grow for animals or people. That is why he tempered it with the rain, so that it would come back to itself and thus remain with its sap and strength. Thus, in these two, the four elements that belong to life, which the philosophers call primas qualitates, are cold.

2) "self" is missing in the Erlanger.

3) "allhie" is missing in the Erlanger.

warm, dry and humid, which must be none without the other. For if it were vain cold, or again vain heat, it would be no life. Now the sun penetrates two parts, heat and dry; likewise the rain also two, that 'it is cold and damp. Thus God gives the whole world daily life and limb, and all the necessities, benefits and uses thereof, most abundantly and altogether in vain, to his enemies as well as to his friends. Yes, it 1) rains most in a desolate, wild forest and water, where it is no use at all, and lets rain very sparsely, where pious people live. Yes, he gives the best kingdoms, land and people, money and goods to the most wicked boys; but to the pious hardly the dear 2) bread to eat.

Because God sets such examples before our eyes everywhere in the wide world, it is as if he wanted to admonish us and say to us: "If you do not know what kind of man I am and what good I do for you, then ask the sun and the moon and the rain about it, and everything that is cold, wet, warm or dry, then you will see not only the countless good deeds that I show to my Christians, but also much more to the wicked, who do not know how to thank me, but persecute my son and pious Christians to the highest degree. So that you should be ashamed when you look at the sun, as it preaches these things to you every day, yes, even before a little flower or a bamboo leaf in the field. For it is written in all the leaves and grass, and there is not a bird, nor a fruit, nor a berry, nor a grain so small, which shall not show thee these things, saying, To whom shall I bear my goodly fruit or berry? To the most wicked wretches and knaves of the earth. What do you 3) show yourself, that you have no love for God, nor do good to your neighbor in your body, and do not show a little 4) to others, because he does you so much good through all creatures without ceasing?

287. 5) There is not a man on earth who suffers so much from evil for the hundredth time.

1) Erlanger: er.

2) "love" is missing in the Erlanger.

3) to blame - to blame oneself.

4) Erlanger: so.

5) Erlanger: still.

6) not only that his goods and all creatures are misused for vain sin and shame, but rather that the very same ones who have the most of such goods, as kings, lords and princes, are so hostile to him and his word as to the devil himself, that they would gladly, where they could, eradicate it all at once; 7) They storm without ceasing with vain reviling, cursing, blaspheming, and in addition with their fists against it, so that there is no one on earth to whom more hatred and envy, together with all kinds of mischievousness and deceitfulness, are shown than his Christians. Well, he must suffer this from all the world; he is still so pious, and lets the sun shine on them daily, and enjoy all his good deeds superfluously, which would rather be worth not having a straw, nor a moment of light, but that he would rain vain hellish fire on them without ceasing, and with rays 8) hailstones, spears, and stones from the bushes on them. This may be called a pious father, who lets so much good, land, people, fruits and good weather happen to such desperate evil-doers, and be lord and sovereign of all things in his estate, that sun and moon and all creatures must serve them, and let themselves be abused to all their will and malice against God. If we want to be the Father's children, we should let ourselves be moved by such a high example, so that we also live in this way.

The other example is that of wicked men and murderers among themselves. They can also do the art of keeping company with one another, and are in good spirits with one another; indeed, they put together life, limb and property, and yet they are only directed to harm people, to rob and murder, and this only for the sake of temporal, uncertain good. Therefore you should be ashamed of yourselves, who are called Christians and children of God and want to go to heaven, and have such a pious, faithful father, who promises and gives you all good things; and yet you are nothing more pious than robbers and murderers, and all those who do not know what they are doing.

6) Erlanger: er.

7) Wittenberger: exterminate.

8) with stralen" will probably mean as much as "gußweife", as in a ray. Therefore, we have deleted the comma after "rays".

like bad boys on earth. For none have ever been so wicked as not to have kept love and friendship among themselves; otherwise how could their nature exist? For even the devils in hell cannot live against each other, otherwise their kingdom would soon be destroyed; as Christ himself says [Luc. 11:18].

Behold now, how pious art thou, when thou art only kind and gracious to thy friends? Yet thou art as pious as thieves and husks, harlots and knaves, yea, as the devil himself. You still walk along, you are safe, and you think you are well off, and you can still adorn yourself gloriously and boast as if you were an angel. Just as our gang spirits now boast of the great love they have for one another, so that one must sense from this that the Holy Spirit is with them. But what do they do? They love their own mobs; besides, they find us mad and murderous enemies, who have done them no harm; so that one can certainly feel what they have for your spirit, and may well boast that they nevertheless have as much love as boys, husks and murderers, plus the devils themselves among themselves. With the way no man on earth would be evil. For no one is so desperately wicked, he must have someone for a friend; otherwise how could he live among the people, if he should bite and devour himself with all the people? If you nnn here also wanted to conclude: He loves his friends, therefore he is pious and holy, then you must also make the devil and all his friends pious in the end.

For this reason, Christ 1) wants to conclude against the Pharisaic saints that everything they teach about love is false, etc. and teaches them to turn the page and look at the Scriptures correctly, where they want to be God's people, so that they see and show love towards their enemies. In this way they could prove that they had a right love and were God's children, as he proves his love to the enemies and the ungrateful. For Moses himself clearly said this in Exodus 23:4, 5: "If you meet your enemy's ox or donkey and he errs, you shall bring him back to him.

1) Erlanger: "he" instead of: "Christ allhie".

of the burden lies, you shall help him up again etc. In you they should have found that they would also be guilty of loving their enemies, if they had looked at the text and not fluttered about it, as now our blind teachers flutter about the Scriptures. For because he is called to restore and to help up an ass or an ox that is the enemy, he will have done much more such things when he himself is in danger of his body, goods, wife, child etc. And in sum, this is what is said: You shall not desire his harm, but prevent it and, where you can, help and encourage him to do good etc. With this you can finally move him and overcome and soften him with good deeds, so that he must love you again, because he sees and experiences no evil, but only love and everything good from you.

291 So then Christ bases this chapter on such doctrine and examples, saying, "Therefore be ye perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect. Here our sophists have dreamed much of perfection, and have attributed everything to their orders and ranks, as if priests and monks alone were in the state of perfection, and one higher than the other: the bishops higher than the others, but the pope highest of all. Thus this word is even torn from the common Christian state, as if they could not be called and be perfect. But here you hear that Christ does not speak to bishops, monks and nuns, but in general to all Christians who want to be his disciples and 2) be called children of God, not like tax collectors and bad boys, as the Pharisees and our clergy are.

But how is it that they are perfect? Answer recently (for elsewhere I have spoken further of this): So we cannot be perfect nor become perfect, that we have no sin, as they dream of perfection, but this is called being perfect here and everywhere in Scripture, that first of all the doctrine should be wholly righteous and perfect, and after that also the life should be directed and walk according to it. This teaching is that we should love not only those who do us good, but also our enemies.

2) Wittenbergers: the.

Whoever teaches such things and lives according to such teachings teaches and lives perfectly.

But the Jews' doctrine and life are both imperfect and wrong, because they teach only to love their friends, and live according to that. For this is a fragmented or divided love, and only half a love. But he wants to have a whole, round, undivided love, so that one loves and does good to the enemy as well as to the friend. Thus I am called a right perfect man, who has and holds the doctrine finely rounded. But whether the life does not afterwards go so strongly in the swing, as it cannot go, because flesh and blood hinder without ceasing, this does no harm to perfection: only that one strives for it, and

I have the right Christian perfection, which does not stand in special offices or classes, but is common to all Christians and should be in line with the example of the heavenly Father. Thus I have the right Christian perfection, which does not stand in special offices or ranks, but is and should be common to all Christians, and is arranged and directed according to the example of the heavenly Father, who neither divides nor shares his love and good deeds, but lets all men on earth enjoy them at the same time through sun and rain, excluding no one, whether he be pious or wicked.

End of the explanation of the fifth chapter of Matthew.