Held August 13, 1531.
This gospel does not teach faith, nor does it teach evangelical doctrine for salvation, but it is a sermon of terror that warns us. It applies to everyone, believers and unbelievers, but most of all to false Christians, works saints, false preachers and Pharisees, who have been evangelical at the highest, and now have become tired and unenthusiastic. It seems to them that they do not want to serve their purpose. And those who hear the gospel the loudest have the hardest sorrow. This Lord will ever be too uncertain and too poor for them, Christ must go out and the devil in; he will give them enough, yes, even too much. For they have the gospel without right faith, and it will help nothing, but only harm.
The Jews of Jerusalem truly had the holiest city, of which there was none on earth, and had the holiest temple, of which there was none on earth; the holiest ceremonies, ordained and set by God Himself, sacrifices and worship all by God. But there were such fine pious children who not only did not think anything of the preaching of God, but they persecuted it and denied it to other people. They had enough of the prophets and faithful preachers, yes, of Christ Himself, the true Savior, who was promised to them, as He proved to them powerfully before their eyes, from their own Scriptures, and with true, divine, almighty deeds, that He was. But no truth helps the hardening. He also had others promise, preach, warn and warn them beforehand; indeed, the longer they went on, the more evil, foolish and senseless they became, as is the way of such people. But it was their raving and raging and
There was no end to their persecution until the right hour came upon them, which paid them well for everything. Then the Lord took out his own, so that not one of them remained with them, and made a multitude of the Jews, and put them all to death shamefully, according to their own judgment: Malos male perdet. The rest, of whom there were few, he scattered, and made them a footstool and a speck to all the people of the earth.
003 The LORD said unto them: A sin breaketh thy neck, O Jerusalem! that thou hast not known nor received thy gracious God, and hast despised and laughed at my fatherly, faithful visitation. But thou wilt not believe it, thou wilt try it, and it shall befall thee. They shall besiege thee, and drag thee, and pull down thy houses, and miserably devastate and kill all. And it came to pass at the feast of Easter, when all the country was gathered together unto Jerusalem to worship. They had become disobedient to the Romans and rebellious, and would not have them for masters, trusting in their well-built strong city, with triple wall, bulwark, ditch, redoubt, and high dams or embankments, out of it to resist all the world. They gathered in cattle and people, far and wide; put off the quantity and strength of the people, when they wrote, about thirty hundred thousand men of the Jews, sent to the fight. The Romans themselves were amazed at the mighty buildings and fortresses of this city and said, "The wrath of God is upon them, or we would never have won.
4. but they were divided among themselves, divided into three bands, plus pestilence, and
*This sermon was published in a single edition without indication of the place and printer under the title: "A Sermon on the Destruction of Jerusalem and on the Horrible Punishment of Those Who Despise and Abuse the Gospel and Do Not Recognize Their Visitation. Martin Luther. Den 13. August 1531." In the collections: in the Hall volume, p. 363; in the Leipzig edition, vol. XII, p. 503; and in the Erlanger, 1st ed. vol. 18, p. 188; in the 2nd ed. vol. 18, p. 23. We reproduce the text according to Walch, who used the first edition (preface to the 7th volume, p. 19, note t.), comparing the Erlanger. Judging by the nature of the sermon, it was not printed by Luther himself. Compare the notes to § 4 and § 5 of this paper.
strangled themselves among themselves, and became too many rogues, and the plague of pestilence the longer the greater. The hunger took over and became deadly. They ate the veins 1) from the crossbows and shields, the leather from the shoes. It finally came to pass that the poor, wretched mothers strangled their own children, and cooked it, and yet could not prosper that they ate it. For the hungry blasphemers, who had fleetingly helped and faithfully advised in such a war, were disgusted; they ran around, smelled where they were cooking, and broke open the houses and took it from the stove; yes, they even tore the food out of each other's teeth and killed each other on the spot. And the greatest lords ate hay, and dung, and dust of the floor. Some strangled their wives and children with grief, and strangled themselves. Some put gold and silver in their bellies, and gave themselves up to free, uncertain flight. And when this was betrayed, they were cut into pieces, and money was sought from everyone, even though he had none. From this, stink, villainy and pestilence increased. 3) But some caught them and sold them among themselves, even thirty for a penny, and led them to Rome and to all countries; not to save them, but to show their shame and disobedience, and to make a spectacle of them. And where they had wild beasts in the ditch, and in their beast-gardens, they cast them among them, to tear them as cats, in their merry times, in their chargers, and in their pankets.
(5) So shall it be with all who do not fear God, who look more to themselves than to God. So God smelled the death of all holy prophets. I care 4) hard for the German land. For now it has the day of gracious and merciful visitation. If it despises him and does not receive him, but-
1) Veins d. j. Tendons.
2) Erlanger: mended.
3) Here the report is extremely incomplete; the time before and after the conquest of Jerusalem is not kept apart, Jews and Romans are mixed into each other.
4) Here, as well as in three other places in this sermon, the original of the Erlangen edition inserts: "says Martinus". This seems to us, as well as the deficient presentation in the previous paragraph, to prove that this sermon was not printed by Luther himself.
If Germany loses this clear light and bright shine of this day, only God will help it, and it will be over and done with. It is anxious for it; for now, at the time of grace, it does not consider its best either. For as the LORD saith, If thou knewest, thou wouldest weep and wail, and all would be forgiven thee. And said: I come not now as an executioner, judge, or persecutor to destroy thee, but as a father, a preacher, and a true Savior to counsel and [help] thee. But if you let this sun go down, it is done for you.
6 Now this concern is also in front of our eyes. Everyone is building, and this same building is a great prophecy of such misery. He has given us a day, he has given us this sun of the holy gospel, he looks after us fatherly, but he does little, the dear Lord. Some take it out with displeasure, some spit it out again, some ridicule it, 5) some, in the further service of God's glory, 6) even persecute it, trample the dear holy gospel and Christ, even his preachers, underfoot, they are a beam and a mountain in their eyes. They take from them what is theirs, rob and steal from them what they have. They would like to chase them all away and have none at all, if they could. And that is what the best Christians are doing now. One can see how the pope with his devil's cave has been choking for a long time, and still rages with haggling, watering and burning. And because the Lord did not spare his own holy city, where there was much more sanctuary inside and holy bodies than this whole city of Wittenberg could contain, than St. David, the beloved, faithful servant of God, holy prophets and others without number. Of course, he will spare us and our sanctuary very little. For we have a unique sanctuary that surpasses all of theirs in one heap. This is the dear, holy gospel, and Christ himself, Emanuel, nobiscum Deus, and Sanctus sanctorum, the Holy One of all saints.
7. it has long since begun at the house of god; god grant that its end may soon come.
5) Erlanger: despicable.
6) This will probably mean: in an office where they were to promote God's honor.
1474 Erl. (2.)18, 27-29. interpretations on the evangelist Lucas. W. VII, 1353 f. 1475
It may well become a great trouble with the wicked. He has ever said Ps. 110, 1: "Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies at your feet." (The more he puts away such multitudes, the holier he is, as a judge who sees faithfully out of them; the more he sows and puts away evildoers, the more pious he is). God sustains us, protects and governs us and our wife, child, servants, land and people, house and farm, everything, worldly and spiritual. Blessed is he who believes it and lives by it. It is well known how the peasants and the dear Scharrhansen have behaved, and still do, against the holy Gospel and its servants, also against their neighbors, also princes and all their authorities, especially in the emergency of theurung against the poor. Well then, if God does not judge them, I will certainly not judge them, but only ask God for them from the heart; he has the wind in his fist, he turns it wherever he wants. Wherever the servants of the word are oppressed, and their goods are scraped, as their own stewards, officials and parishioners do; or where they are 1) even persecuted in body and goods, chased away with wife and child, or even strangled: what better can come of it, than as here in the time of Christ? If it goes, we must also eat; if we have eaten out of the bowl, we must also expect the muzzlers and eat with them. Yes, yes, this is how it is: he who lives with them, he who perishes with them; we must repay them. But we should ask diligently, he would do it, he has promised. Otherwise, I know I must enjoy my neighbors.
8. but I ever worry, this building 2) our? City of Wittenberg is our prophet Isaiah. That I like the building badly? No. Because the stronger this city becomes, the greater our misfortune becomes. So we have to be outnumbered with jackanapes. The same our dear friends help us, that our eyes go over, that we cry out: Awe God's mother! and rather wish and strive how we could get away from them, and much rather be killed by the enemies. The Viennese know much to say about this, and how the boys of God themselves
1) mans -man them.
2) In 1530, the fortifications of Wittenberg had begun to be strengthened. Cf. Walch, St. Louis Edition, Vol. XXII, 1814, No. 61.
We have bravely turned our backs on those of Vienna. When they are at their fullest, let alone when they are hungry and have gambled away their pay and clothing, they run in, take by force what they desire, smash the other, and ravish wife and child. They rule and muzzle the master of the house and subdue everyone according to their will. They are Pochhansen, torture cats, yes, potz torture, five sufferings, Veltin, pestilence 2c. Now (they speak to them) are war runs, we must save you; what! if I scholl to you with the harlot and woman jest, beware of a greater.
(9) Then let him that can flee, rather take wife and child, and perish outwardly in the body, than inwardly all the body and soul. I do not want to stay, because they are free men, they have neither wife nor child, they are whores and boys, abusers of women and virgins, blasphemers, gamblers, and silent men. All in all, these country boys are the children of the chosen devil. If they should save us, God would not be with us. Therefore, only far from them, and much rather from them, than died with them. I would have to preach to them only what they wanted. It would be a city that would want to overpower them, and would put them in a special place. I still say it, I will not stay, I could not get away. If God would, I would not experience it. I will have told you, if I lay the head, that ye may know it beforehand, and know it, and be instructed, and be patient. For with patience in God you will overcome it, and you will not be comforted at all by the goat; but rather pray to God that you will not need it, that it will not come to this. For according to human form it must happen 2c., 4) only God will turn it around. And it would be the same for our pious prince as it is for us, where such boys would become the patrons of the city and the country. I still say, where such scoundrels move in, remember that you are moving out, and only roll yourselves up soon. Christ ordered his disciples and all his own to roll away, and they had to flee from Jerusalem, young and old.
3) In the original: thäts.
4) "u. s. w." is missing in the Erlanger.
the little wheel. When Christ went out, the devil went in and became their patron; they despised Christ, a king of peace and honor. So when it goes or comes, we only say: O Lord, we have well deserved it, we have thrown away the day of your visitation and visitation, and have taken the night for it; it only serves us right.
(10) Yes, the wall and strong buildings help. If our wall were iron, and thicker than this church, and high up to heaven, it would not help. Yes, guns and armor. For if the host, which is called Christ, is consumed, let the devil remain, and he also remains. And we here in this principality looked quite dreadful in all things, and that is with the holy gospel. And how we hold his messengers, we know it well, and he knows it too. He will pay us richly. He gives us food and drink, and provides enough for us in our homes; and when he comes to us, he also wants to eat with us; but they want to push him away and out hungrily. If thou cast him out, if thou overpower him, thou shalt be the first. 1) If then thou shalt first cry unto him, when the need of thy destruction is present, he saith: I do not hear you. I have also long cried unto thee, thou hast not wished to hear me, thou hast not wished to hear me; away, away, I will laugh at thee now. So do the mobs; they have cast Christ away, and have received the devil. And the market is at the door; go in or go out, buy patience in Christ; it may save you, and earnest prayer. For if the Jews were thus martyred with their law, how much more we who have the gospel of God? 2). Christ advances to them: You have destroyed my kingdom and regiment; let yours also be broken.
011 Now the king rideeth in at Jerusalem, king Zion cometh: he weepeth, when he ought to laugh, and to be merry as a young king, and to offer defiance and reproach unto the knaves that had done against him; and he should
1) Here it may be necessary to add: whom God will punish.
2) The meaning will probably be:. If the Jews, who had only the law, had such severe suffering, how much more will it not be given to us, who have the gospel.
have said: Wait, you husks, I will come to you as you deserve. No, he weeps, as if to say, "Oh, beloved children, how you mourn for me, that you do yourselves such evil, and so despise your salvation. He goes into temples with a fiery spirit and great hot temper against the blasphemy that happened to his heavenly Father, that they made devil's service out of God, and preached: "If you give much, you will be much blessed. And made vain monasticism of it, and works of satisfaction; as our monks do now, and all the papists; and made notched wood of their avarice, usury, and all profiteering and financery, turning God's service upon their service. But the Lord does not have to do this, he is not obliged to take upon himself according to our will. Come, Christ, come, we are honest people, confirm our cause and our nobility. No, he will turn himself in. For we have it all from him, and cannot give ourselves a little hair. But we all mean to make God laugh with our works, if it pleases us, and we want to enter into judgment with him. If we destroy his gospel, we will not stay in Jerusalem. This chasing and beating in the temple was only a prelude; the real thing came afterwards, over forty years. They did not see Christ before their avarice.
This is the whole main fault, they did not like the holy gospel. As if to say: You persecute the holy gospel, your salvation and happiness. You blame the gospel for all the plagues that are in the world, because it makes you unhappy. But you lie about it publicly. For all comfort, help and good comes from it. Well then, it shall be and remain your cause, according to your delusion, and the gospel shall fail you and rend you asunder, so that not one trumpet shall remain with another, even unto the abyss of hell. I will make it true for you. The Lord always preached in the temple for three days, that he had never been so fierce before; for the need and the hour pressed upon his neck. The dear Christ would ever have liked to see it well. I warn you, do not lie down in the hospital in Jerusalem, otherwise you will perish there. Let it be so this time. We want to ask God diligently 2c.