Commentary upon the Epistle to the Galatians

First with thy wisdom thou dost darken the wisdom and knowledge of Christ, and by thy wicked doctrine leadest men out of the way, so that they can not come to the grace and knowledge of Christ. Thou settest out and praisest thine own righteousness and holiness: but the righteousness of Christ,¹ by which only we are justified and quickened, thou doest detest and condemn as wicked and devilish. To be short by thy power thou destroyest the kingdom of Christ, and doest abuse the same to root out the gospel, to persecute and kill the ministers of Christ, and so many as hear them. Wherefore if thou be without Christ, this thy wisdom is double foolishness, thy righteousness double sin and impiety, because it knoweth not the wisdom and righteousness of Christ: moreover it darkeneth, hindereth, blasphemeth, and persecuteth the same.² Therefore Paul doth rightly call it the evil or wicked world: for when it is at the best, then is it worst. In the religious, wise, and learned men the world is at the best, and yet in very deed in them it is double evil. I overpass those gross vices which are against the second table, as disobedience to parents, to magistrates, adulteries, whoredoms, covetousness, thefts, murders, and maliciousness, wherein the world is altogether drowned, which notwithstanding are light faults if ye compare them with the wisdom and righteousness of the wicked, wherewith they fight against the first table. This ⟨p. 21⟩white Devil which forceth men to commit spiritual sins,³ that they may sell them for righteousness, is far more dangerous then the black devil, which only enforceth them to commit fleshly sins which the world acknowledgeth to be sins.

First with thy wisedom thou dost darken the wisedom and knowledge of Christ, and by thy wicked doctrine leadest men out of the way, so that they can not come to the grace and knowledge of Christ. Thou settest out and praisest thine owne righteousnes and holines: but the righteousnes of Christ,¹ by which onely we are iustified and quickened, thou doest detest and condemne as wicked and deuillish. To be shorte by thy power thou destroyest the kingdom of Christ, and doest abuse the same to roote out the gospell, to persecute and kill the ministers of Christ, and so many as heare them. Wherfore if thou be without Christ, this thy wisedom is double foolishnes, thy righteousnesse double sinne and impietie, because it knoweth not the wisedom and righteousnes of Christ: moreouer it darkneth, hindreth, blasphemeth, and persecuteth the same.