Menno Simons · 47 of 109

THE REASON WHY MENNO SIMON DOES NOT CEASE TEACHING AND WRITING. · Part 1

FOR Zion's sake will I not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest, until the righteousness thereof go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burneth; and the Gentiles shall see thy righteousness, and all kings thy glory," Isa. 62:1, 2.

I am well aware, most beloved readers, that we are, on account of our teaching and writing, cursed, envied, hated, slandered, persecuted and condemned to death, by in­numerable persons of both high and low stations in life. As roaring lions they gnash their teeth at us. Lords, princes, learned and ignorant people, no matter of what station in life, exercise their tyranny over us, as may at all times be seen; not solely upon us, but also upon all those who accept and fulfill, by their works, this our doctrine, with believing, faithful, obedient and resigned hearts. Not that we claim it to be our doctrine, understand, but it is the eternal, heavenly and unchangeable doc­trine of our beloved Lord Jesus Christ, which he himself has carried from high heaven, from the bosom of his Father, to earth with his own blessed mouth which cannot lie; which he has taught, and pro­claimed to the world by his faithful wit­nesses, the holy apostles, which he had chosen for that purpose. Whosoever does not believe that our doctrine is the pure, undefiled and saving doctrine of Jesus Christ, may piously examine the rest of the plain Scriptures of the New Testament and he will come to the conclusion and ac­knowledge that it is the pure doctrine, testi­mony and Spirit of Christ Jesus, however much his reluctant, lazy, rebellious, refrac­tory, selfish and disobedient flesh may op­pose, frighten, tremble and be awe‑stricken thereat. Yet, however incontrovertible our cause appears, so much so that it can not be controverted or refuted by the Scriptures, still it must be persecuted by this ignorant, blind world as an abominable crime and treated as heresy. The prophet says, "I have written to him the great things of my law, but they were counted as a strange thing." Hosea 8:12.

O, worthy, beloved reader, if you would consider and realize how earnestly the righteous God ever enforces his holy word, and how terribly his wrath has ever been enkindled against those who did not abide firm in his divine word, you would, without doubt, in case you are not within the word of God, tremble, and be frightened in your inmost soul before God, on account of your disobedience! Did you never read that the parents of all mankind, Adam and Eve, who were, by the power of the divine Word created by God himself and punished by him on account of their disobedience; banished from paradise; subjected to manual labor; that the earth was accursed in them, and that all their daughters must suffer and give birth to their children in perilous travail and excrutiating pain; not to mention that they would be subject to eternal death, if the new Man of grace, the blessed Christ Jesus, had not, by grace, prevented this? Why was it? For no other reason than that they did not abide in the true word of the living God, but lived according to their lusts, contrary to the word of God, trusting in the deceit of the lying serpent rather than in the warning of the true God, who, by grace, had created them, wise, righteous and incorrupt, and placed them as lords of all creatures, Gen. 2:26.

Again, do you not know that all the creatures under the heaven, both rational and irrational, were destroyed by water, through the righteous judgment of God, except those that were in the ark with Noah, because they became corrupt and lived according to their lusts, and in my opinion, because they did not acknowledge the Spirit of the Lord, as their judge? Gen. 6; 7; 8. O do consider these things, and doubtlessly, you will hereafter sincerely fear your God, and ever abide in his holy word!

Besides, you must have often heard, and perchance read for yourselves about Sodom and Gomorrah, Gen. 18; 20; 19:4; Er and Onan, Gen. 38:7‑9; the idolaters, Ex. 32:5; the man who gathered sticks upon the Sabbath day, Num. 15:32‑36; Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, Num. 16; about the murmurers, Num. 21:5; Zimri and the oth­er adulterers, Num. 25:14, 15; Nadab and Abihu, Lev. 10:2; those who hid the for­bidden things, Joshua 7; King Saul, 1 Sam. 15:17‑22; Jeroboam, Manasseh and the other kings, priests and prophets who did not abide in the true worship and in obedi­ence to the divine word, which was given through Moses, but taught and practiced either more or less or something quite dif­ferent from the law of the Lord; how terri­bly and in how many different ways they and their followers were punished and smitten by God, who desires to have his will obeyed. Some suddenly died; some were pierced with the sword, Ex. 32:27; Num. 25:5; some were stoned to death, Num. 15:36; Josh. 7:25; some were swallowed up by the earth, Num. 16:32; some were bitten by serpents; Num. 21:6; some were hanged, Num. 25:4; some were consumed by the fire, Lev. 10:2; Saul's kingdom was taken from him, 1 Kings 15:28; and put to death with the sword; the house of Jerobo­am and Achab were taken from the earth; the eyes of Zedechias were put out; Manas­seh was captured; and all Israel was in exile in foreign countries, as in Assyria, Babylonia, and Egypt as recorded in Chronicles, Kings, and the prophets. I repeat, why was it? Solely because they did not abide in the law of their God, but either by their own choice or else out of disrespect for the law, transgressed it, establishing without the command of God, images, temples and al­tars, in many countries and cities, Jer. 2; Hosea 10; in many mountains and under large trees, Hosea 4:13; notwithstanding, as may be seen by the writings of many prophets, that Moses so strenuously com­manded them as also was commanded their fathers, thus, "What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: thou shalt not add thereto nor diminish from it," Deut. 12:32. At another place, that on all those who do not abide by the works of the covenant, which are written in the Book, all the plagues will come, and on the contrary, all the blessings will be to all those who abide thereby, Deut. 28:58, 59. The children of Israel did not always abide by the ex­press, commanding word of him who had, by his powerful hand, brought them out of the land of Egypt; but suffered themselves to be misled by ungodly princes and false prophets, and chose for themselves, with­out the divine commandment, places for divine worship; carved for themselves ima­ges and built themselves temples. All this by their own choice, and not by divine com­mand; besides, they committed all manner of idolatry. This the Holy Spirit, in divers Scriptures, has called shameful whoredom, perjury, accursed idolatry and despising the Lord. The prophet says, "Woe unto them, for they have fled from me; destruc­tion unto them! Because they have trans­gressed against me; though I have redeemed them, yet they have spoken lies against me," Hosea 7:13.

As Israel deviated from the law of their God, and committed themselves to the serv­ice of Baal, not being content with the law, doctrine and service which God had com­manded them through Moses, which Baal with his altars they however erected to the service of the living God, as it appears; so God in his grace and paternal love which he bore to Israel for the sake of their fa­thers, again sent his faithful servants, the prophets, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Elias, Ezekiel, and others, who sharply reproved, in be­half of God, the degenerated princes, false prophets and the miserable, confused peo­ple; and again returned them to the true worship and ceremonies of the law which God had commanded, and which they had forsaken.

Besides, they prophesied famine, pesti­lence, failures, drought, war, conflagration, robbery, imprisonment and destruction, as plagues on account of their sins and diso­bedience. And also concerning the divine grace, salvation, deliverance, peace, mercy, and the eternal glory, which in the latter days will so gloriously appear unto all the world through Christ Jesus our Lord, who is the only promised prophet, Deut. 18:15. The truly anointed of the Lord; the spirit­ual King David, Ezek. 3:24; who estab­lishes his kingdom by right and righteous­ness, Isa. 9:7; the true Shepherd who leads us into the pastures of eternal life, Ezek. 34:14; whose name is Emmanuel, that is, God with us, Isa. 7:14; Matt. 1:23; and the Lord who makes us righteous, who shall reign over the house of Jacob forever, Luke 1:33; and this was the peculiar work of the holy prophets who were graciously sent of God the Lord, to the carnal Israel. But what did it avail, dear reader? They preached both mildly and harshly, punish­ment and grace, judgment and mercy; yet it was all in vain, as God plainly pro­claimed by these same prophets, saying, "I have spread out my hands all the day unto a rebellious people, which walketh in a way that was not good, after their own thoughts," Isa. 65:2.

Again, "Proclaim all these words in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusa­lem, saying," "Obey my voice. Yet they obeyed not, nor inclined their ear, but walked every one in the imagination of their evil hearts; therefore I will bring upon them all the words of this covenant which I commanded them to do; but they did them not," Jer. 11:6, 7, 8. Again, "O Ephraim, thou committest whoredom and Israel is defiled; they will not frame their doings to turn unto their God; for the spirit of whore­doms is in the midst of them, and they have not known the Lord," Hosea 5. Again, at another place, "The Lord has testified against Israel and against Judah, by all the prophets, and by all the seers, saying, Turn ye from your evil ways, and keep my commandments, and my statutes, according to all the law, which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by my servants, the prophets. Notwithstanding they would not hear, but hardened their necks, like to the neck of their fathers, that did not believe in the Lord their God," 2 Kings 1:13, 14. Again, "Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, saying, Execute true judgment, and show mercy and compassions every man to his brother; and oppress not the widow, nor the fatherless, the stranger, nor the poor, and let none of you imagine evil against his brother, in your heart; but they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder, and stopped their ears, that they should not hear. Yea, they made their hearts as an adamant stone, lest they should hear the law, and the words which the Lord of hosts hath sent in his Spirit by the former prophets; therefore came a great wrath from the Lord of hosts," Zech. 7:9‑12.

Yea, most beloved reader, they have so stopped their ears and so hardened their hearts that they would not only not hear, but all of them, as a general rule, and par­ticularly most of the kings, princes, proph­ets and priests, wittingly thirsted after the innocent blood of the true witnesses of God, who, by an inextinguishable fire of love fraternally reproved them of their sins, called them to repent and turn to God, and they proclaimed and taught the way of the Lord in righteousness.

Thus the mad, blind world has thanked and rewarded the faithful servants of God, the true prophets and true teachers of the divine truth, who sincerely seek their sal­vation, by upbraiding, imprisoning, beat­ing, banishing and slaying them. For the obdurate, ignorant, whoring, refractory people will not be reproved as may be read in the fourth chapter of Hosea, and of the men of Anathoth to Jeremiah, saying, "Prophesy not in the name of the Lord that thou die not by our band," Jer. 11:21; and "As for the word which thou hast spoken unto us in the name of the Lord, we will not hearken unto thee," Jer. 44:18.

The selfish and lustful teachers will not suffer themselves to lie reproved or admon­ished; they boast of their wisdom, and say, "We are supported by the Holy Scriptures: although all that the scribes say and teach is falsehood."

Above all, the proud, carnal, worldly, idolatrous and tyrannical princes, who do not acknowledge God, I speak of the evil princes, who do not want to be right in all their mandates, projects and undertakings, however much they may be at variance with God and his blessed word; as if the Almighty Father, the Creator of all things, who holds heaven and earth in his hands, who rules all things by the word of his power, had given them the privilege not only to com­mand, rule and administer according to their will in temporal government, but also in the celestial kingdom of Jesus Christ. O no, beloved, no. This is not the inten­tion of God; but it is an abomination in his blessed sight when mortal man substi­tutes himself in his stead. And when he raised up and sent his beloved servants, the prophets who, fraternally reproved and admonished all the princes, prophets, priests and common people from the mouth of God; the princes destroyed them as se­ditious persons, and the learned and com­mon people as deceivers and heretics; as was the case with Zechariah, the son of Berechiah; with Isaiah, Jeremiah, Uriah, Kiriathaim and others, as may be read in history.

However ravenously the princes and the learned tyranized and opposed the law and its followers, yet the law and word of God remained immutable until Christ Jesus; so that every one who desired to be saved had to regulate and conform himself according to the law and his conscience, if he would see the dawn of day. For God is an eter­nal God and his will can never be changed and diverted by man. In this case neither prince nor learned man can avail. God alone, has dominion over man; he will keep them in all eternity.

Therefore all things which they instituted and practiced as holy worship without the command of God, or against it (not withstanding it was in honor of the living God who had so gloriously led their fathers and them from the land of Egypt), was nothing less than open idolatry, spiritual whoredom, perfidy, degeneracy, blasphemy and an awful abomination, as we have above briefly shown the reader from the prophetic Scriptures. God is a God who does not need our aid and offerings, because he has made all things. Mine, he says, are the cattle, upon a thousand hills. What then can I offer? He will take no other sacrifices than those alone which are commanded in his holy word, as Samuel spake unto Saul, "Behold to obey is better than sacrifice." The Lord God of Israel spake through Jer­emiah, saying, "Obey my voice, and do them, according to all which I commanded you, so shall ye be my people, and I will be your God," Jer. 11:4; 2 Cor. 8:17.

All those, beloved reader, who sought a different way of salvation than the one which God had commanded, either did not esteem God as wise enough to teach the right way; or else that he would deceive them by his word. They despised the com­manding voice of their God; they honored and exalted their own opinions and de­ceiving wisdom far above the wisdom of God; and they transgressed the precious covenant which God, by mere grace and mercy, had entered into with them and their fathers; for the most shameful obduracy, and the worst disesteem of God, is not to abide by his divine word, as the Scriptures say, They transgress the covenant, as did Adam, and thereby they despise and abhor me.

O, had Israel acknowledged the most glorious promise of grace which was given them and their fathers in regard to the promise of the seed, land, kingdom and glory? And had they considered the benefi­cences of God, so abundantly shown to them and their fathers, in miraculously leading them from the land of Egypt, and letting them pass through the Red Sea, Ex. 14:22; that "He went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire," Ex. 13:21; that he gave them bread from heaven, Ex. 16:4; that he gave them to drink from the rock, Ex. 17:6: that their clothes nor their shoes did not wax old, Deut. 29:5; that he scattered the giants from before them; that he led them into the promised land overflowing with milk and honey; that he gave to them the strongly fortified cities and well built houses full of gold and silver, which they had not built; that he gave them the vineyards they had not planted, Deut. 6:11; that he gave them these not for their right­eousness' sake, but by grace, and because he would fulfill his promise which he had sworn to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Yea he gave it as a permanent possession, if they should abide by his holy word and should walk in his divine commands, stat­utes and righteousness, as Moses the faith­ful servant had, in divers instances, taught and commanded. Besides, that he gave them corn, oil, wine, peace, freedom, reli­gion, and fame above all the people round about; for there was no people under all the heavens which was like unto them, Deut. 4. He led them by the hand, as a young child; carried them in his blessed arms; and girded himself round about them as a lancer, as Jeremiah says; raising up among them his righteous men and proph­ets who spake unto them the words of the Lord, fraternally reproving all disobedient transgressors, and mildly consoling the pious hearts with the gracious promise of both temporal and eternal life.

O, had the children of Israel sincerely realized all these favors and many others, they would never have deviated so shame­fully from the word, law, will and com­mandments of God their Savior and Deliv­erer, who in every respect treated them with such a paternal spirit. But because they did not acknowledge the gracious benefi­cences which the Lord showed unto them, and because they did not fear the righteous judgments against them, therefore the wick­ed, blind flesh and the adulterous spirit of idolatry has so misled them, so estranged them from God, and made them so drunk and mad that they acted worse than the Gentiles which were before them, whom God had, on account of their sinfulness, re­jected and scattered, as the holy prophets in divers Scriptures show and proclaim.

O, fearful wrath of God! We can never escape it. If we do not desire grace, light, truth, righteousness, salvation, true religion, life, the kingdom, blessing and God him­self, we must, by his righteous judgment, doubtlessly, inherit disgrace, darkness, falsehood, unrighteousness and idolatry, and hereafter eternal damnation, death, hell, malediction, and the devil himself.

Sincerely beloved readers, God knows that I love you with pure love in Christ Jesus. Inasmuch as I find in proof of many Scriptures how severely God has, from the beginning of the creation, ever punished all transgression of his divine word and diso­bedience thereto, as every intelligent reader may clearly understand from the history of Israel; and as I clearly see that the whole world, from east to west, from south to north, in the course of time, has been mis­led by ignorant teachers and preachers, who seek nothing but carnality, aided by unfaithful lords and princes, and that they have lost their faith in and knowledge of our beloved Lord Jesus Christ, the ever blessed Savior, his holy gospel and sacra­ments, true religion and the pious, unblam­able life which is of God; and as they are falsely led, under the name of Christ, to put faith in a man of proud, unclean, idol­atrous and ungodly flesh, in useless fables, doctrines and human commandments; in an idolatrous baptism and supper; in im­ages, wood, stone, gold, silver, water, bread and wine; in a shameful idolatry; in mere vain, false and useless promises, so that it has gone so far among those who boast of the name of Christ, that there is nothing left them, neither in regard to faith, love, sacraments, nor in their life of which it can be truthfully said that it comports to the life and doctrine of Christ, judge for your­selves whether or not I speak the truth; and although some of them, to‑day, boast of the holy gospel of Christ, yet there is nothing preached but that is useless and vain, and this no stronger than the tempo­ral lords and princes allow them to do; and, as the princes are, so are the preach­ers; and, as the preachers are, so are the people; and as by this we are asked to abandon Christ and his holy apostles and humble them in their doctrine and believe and adhere to the princes and the learned, if we do not want to be tortured or burned, at their hands, or be murdered by some other tyrannical means; as if the preachers were sent by the princes, and not of Christ—therefore, for the sake of the chosen of Zion and of Jerusalem, I can no longer hold my tongue, but must tell the truth; that their righteousness may go forth as a light, and their salvation burn as a torch; and that thus all mankind may acknowledge the righteousness of the Lord, and all tongues, generations and people confess his glory; although I have sometimes, with Jeremiah, thought not to teach any more in the name of the Lord, because so many thirst after my blood. Yet, I can no longer hold my tongue; for I am, with the prophet, very much troubled at heart; my heart trembles in my bosom; all my joints shake and quake, with the idea that the whole world, lords, princes, learned and ignorant people, males and females, bond and free, are so widely estranged from Christ Jesus, from evangelical truth and from life eternal.

When I think to find a magistrate who fears God, rightly performs his office and uses his sword, I verily find, as a general thing, nothing but a wine bibbing Lucifer, An­tioch, or Nero; for they place themselves in Christ's stead so that their decrees must be re­spected above the word of God. Whosoever does not regulate himself according to their contents; does not serve Baal; maintains the ceremonies of Christ and fulfills the word of God in fruits, must be taken and suffer as a rogue, his property be confiscated, and the poor, innocent orphans who have now lost their faithful parents because of the testimo­ny of the Lord, must be cast out and find their way begging through the land. But the idolaters, deceivers of souls, whoremongers, knaves, adulterers, fornicators, blasphem­ers, perjurers, drunkards and like trans­gressors, are not persecuted, but can live at liberty and peace, under their pro­tection, I do not here speak of the good magistrates, who are few; but of the evil ones, which are numerous. Besides, we have their unseasonable pomp, pride, greed, un­cleanness, lying, robbing, stealing, burning, hatred, envy, avarice and idolatry. Yet they want to be called christian princes and gracious lords. O, Lord! Of what little benefit will these hypocritical, lying titles and false boasting be to them before Christ, when he shall appear!

Again, when I think of finding true teach­ers, such as are sent of God, quickened by the Holy Spirit; who sincerely seek the salvation of their brethren; who are not earthly minded, but preach the saving, wholesome word of our beloved Lord Jesus Christ, in purity of heart, and who are quite unblamable in their doctrine and life, I find myself altogether mistaken. But in­stead, I find all over the world and among most of the sects, nothing but robbers of the glory of God, and murderers of souls; deceivers, blind watchmen, mute dogs, mas­ters of sects who are carnally, earthly and devilishly minded; enemies of the cross; serving their bellies instead of serving God; false prophets, idolaters, vain talkers, liars, and wizards. If any person does not be­lieve my words, let him prove their walk by the word of the Lord; let him compare their doctrine, sacraments, spirit, object, walk and life with the doctrine, sacraments, spir­it, object, walk and life of Christ, and com­mon sense will teach you, without, even the word of God, of whom they are sent; how, what and why they teach and what fruits their teachings bear.

In the third place, when I think of find­ing an unblamable church without spot and blemish, which serves the Lord with all its power and which conforms itself to his word—I verily find such an ungodly, abomina­ble, corrupted and confused people; so car­nal, idolatrous, whoring, cruel, ungodly, unbelieving, ignorant, blood‑thirsty, un­merciful, drunken, pompous, luxurious, proud, avaricious, greedy, envious, adulter­ous, false, deceiving, sodomitic, refractory, disobedient, rebellious, vain, and so devil­ish, that a godfearing soul must stand dumbfounded and be ashamed thereat. Yet they claim to be the true bride, the believ­ing church of Christ. O no, dear reader, no. Christ Jesus does not own such a bride or church. But his bride is flesh of his flesh and bone of his bone, Eph. 5:30; she conforms to him, Rom. 8:29; is created after his image, Col. 3:10; partakes of his nature, 2 Pet. 1:4; is minded as he is, Phil. 2:6; seeks nothing but heavenly things where Christ Jesus is, sitting at the right hand of his Father, Col. 3:1; yea in God's church nothing is heard, seen or found but the true doctrine of our beloved Lord Jesus Christ and his holy apostles, according to the Holy Scripture. But in the beforemen­tioned churches it is mostly doctrines, flat­terings, comments, councils and command­ments of men. Here is faith, truth, obedi­ence, baptism of the believing, according to the word of God, true fraternal love, and the service of our neighbors; yonder is un­belief, falsehood, disobedience, infant bap­tism without God's word, hatred, envy, tyr­anny, cruelty, shedding blood, quarreling, lawsuits, backbiting, cheating, stealing, robbing and murdering; here is teaching, admonition, consolation, reproof in right­eousness‑there, mere corruption, heresy, upbraiding and slandering; here, blessing, praise and thanksgiving‑there, cursing and swearing by the suffering of the Lord, by his wounds, sacraments, flesh, blood and judgment; here, longsuffering‑there, inflammable temper; here, humility‑there, pride; here, mercy‑there, mercilessness; here, true religion‑there, idolatry; here, spirit and spiritual wisdom‑there, flesh and foolishness; here is prayer in spirit and in truth‑there, mockery with many powerless words; here is prayer for the Lord's truth‑there the righteousness of the Lord is persecuted; here is faith in Christ—there, idolatrous ceremonies; in short, here is Christ and God‑there, anti‑Christ and the devil. Yea, most beloved brethren, the pure, chaste and spotless bride of our Lord Jesus Christ (judge for yourselves) is quite different from this carnal, unclean, adulterous and shameful cause.

Verily, they are not the true church of Christ who merely boast of his name. But those are the true church of Christ, who were converted, who are born from above of God, who are of a regenerated mind and by the operation of the Holy Spirit from the hearing of the divine word have become children of God; who obey him, and live, unblamably in his holy commandments and according to his holy will, all their days, or after their calling.

Inasmuch as the worldly church is no such amiable, obedient bride, but has left her lawful husband, Christ, and follows after strange adulteries, as may be plainly seen, and all this through blindness, igno­rance and the deceit of their teachings therefore I seek to accomplish nothing by my writing and teaching, according to the talent God was pleased to give me, but to reclaim this adulterous bride, the erring church, from her adulterous actions and again to return her to her first husband, Christ Jesus, to whom she was so unfaith­ful, notwithstanding he did her such great service, showing and declaring to all sects, nations and individuals who desire to read or hear our doctrine, writings and admoni­tions, not by flatterings and my own opinion, but by the express word of God, which alone avails, that there is no salvation on earth or in heaven otherwise than in Christ Jesus, that is, in his doctrine, faith, sacra­ments, obedience and walk. All doctrine which is contrary to his word or without his command, is vain, such as, in the papal church, purgatory, false promises, differ­ences in places, in victuals and in days, pilgrimages, false sacrifices, &c. Again, to the German churches, the availability of infant baptism. Again, with the corrupted sects, the third David; the carnal kingdom; that every thing is clean to the clean, such as to show to idols outward honor and rever­ence, to baptize infants, polygamy, shameful confession, to make indecent show of person, not to believe in angels or the devil; that a more perfect doctrine will be proclaimed than was taught by Christ Jesus, Paul and the other apostles, and more like abominations.

Again, all the sacraments not comprised in the word of God, as the idolatrous bap­tism of infants, the false supper in a church which neither seeks, knows, fears nor loves its God; which believes that the bread is actual flesh and the wine actual blood; also, the confirmation, the holy oil, as they call it; again, all the services which are neither taught nor commanded by Christ nor his apostles, such as holy water, altars, images, masses, vigils, absolution, the invocation of the departed, monkhood, pilgrimages and the like abominations. Again, the private and public life which does not comfort with the Spirit and life of Jesus Christ; such as unclean, vulgar thoughts, evil desires, unbecoming, shame­ful words; uncleanness, adultery, fornica­tion, drinking to excess, hatred, envy, the shedding of blood contrary to the ordinance of God, avarice, pride, lying, cheating, back­biting, jesting, theft, usury, murder, swear­ing and fighting. All these matters and articles, such as doctrines, sacraments, worship and life, which are here noted, and others which are not, every reader can easi­ly understand by the inward unction of God, that they, not being comprised, expressed, nor commanded in his word and in the wholesome doctrine of our beloved Lord Jesus Christ, but most of them being dia­metrically contrary to the Word, therefore we deem them, according to the sentence of the Holy Scriptures, as nothing else than false doctrine, deceit and fantasy; as false and garbled, idolatrous sacraments, as abominable idolatry, spiritual whore­dom, degeneracy, and as carnal, earthly and deadly life, of which the Holy Spirit of God has so abundantly testified through Paul and John that those who commit these things shall not inherit the kingdom of God, Rom. 1:22; 1 Cor. 6:8; Gal. 5:21; Eph. 3:5; Rev. 22:5.