A pistle to the Christen reader The revelation of Antichrist. Antithesis

of Matthew he teacheth that a rebellion should not be killed / but avoided and put out of company / like a gentle.

of Mathew he theacheth that a rebellion shuld not be kilde / but avoided and put out of cumpanye / like a gentill.

So he hath not delivered us from the law / but from the power and violence of the law / which is the very true losing / giving all men liberty at their own peril to do other good or evil. But for all that he hath not taken a way from the powers and officers their right / sword / and authority to punish the evil / for such pertain not to his kingdom until they are made spiritual / and then freely and with a glade heart serve god. And sith these things are so in the precepts of god (much more they are of value in the ceremonies / which are clean vanished away) so that we can not offend against them / let us thank our father which hath plucked this yoke from our necks. And desire faith of him / which faith only is most sufficient unto our justification / but sith this king of faces the Pope doth nothing but command and compel in all his decrees / and that in the stead & name of God / it is evident enough how that he is the adversary of Christ / and the corruptor ⟨p. lxiiij⟩of the new testament / ye and the Enemy of the Christen liberty. Compelling men against their wills to do the works which he commandeth them / through the which tyranny he is the author of so many since be cause the works are done of no glad mind / for while they think that they are bound to his commandments / they have a blot in their scrupulous consciences if they omit any thing / and yet be cause they do it with an evil will truly they offend in their hearts / where as they should not have offended / through their resisting and hating will of the law / if he had commanded nothing / but only exhorted and desired. And contrary wise to them that obey him / he is the author of false feigned righteousness / for while they believe that they have done well / and repute their obedience for justice / they are brought to this blindness that they think they are good / not through the faith of Christ / but by these laws and works. And thus truly doth he corrupt the faith and trueth / both multiply and increase evil consciences / and make feigned good consciences. And sith he doth so through all the world / it is evident what a corrupter and despoiler he is / for even so many he corrupteth / as he hath subdued and led under his laws and empery. And who is be in the world that is not subject under