An expositio[n] upon the two epistles of the apostle S. Paul to the Thessalonians…An expositio[n] vpon the two epistles of the apostle S. Paul to the Thessalonians…

Unto the Church of the Thessalonians, which is in God the father and in the Lord Jesus Christ. There are sundry sorts of Churches. There is a Church of the wicked, whereof the Prophet saith, I have hated the assembly ¹of the evil, and have not companied with the wicked. Two hundred and fifty Captains, ²men of renown, and famous in the congregation, joined themselves to Korah, Dathan, and Abiram. But Moses said unto Korah, thou and all thy company, are gathered together against the Lord. The builders of the great tower ³of Babel were many in number, and consented to that they had imagined to do, thereby to get them a name, but the Lord did confound their language, and scattered them upon the face of the earth. The Scribes and Pharisees and high Priests held a c•uncel, and ⁴conferred among themselves. But, against the Lord, and against his Christ. John is commanded ⁵to write unto the Angel of the church of the Smyrnians, These things saith he which is first and last, which was dead, and is alive. I know the blasphemy of them, which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the Synagogue of Satan. They revile you, and speak all manner of evil against you for my names sake. They charge you with teaching false doctrine, and ⟨p. 7⟩say you have departed from the Church: that they are the seed of Abraham, the children of promise, the true worshippers of God, and which walk in the steppes of their forefathers. But, their boast hereof is vain. It profiteth them nothing, that Abraham was their father, that the covenant was made with them, that they were circumcised, that a law was given unto them. Let them not trust in their fathers: let them not trust in lying words, and say the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, this is the temple of the Lord. If they were Abraham's children, they would do the works of Abraham. If God were their father, then would they love Christ his Son, and seek to set forth his glory. If they were of the sheepfold of God, they would hear his voice. They are of their father the Devil, and the lusts of their father they will do. They are in name the servants of Christ, but serve Antichrist: they call themselves Jews, but are the Synagogue of Satan. For (saith the Apostle) he is