A06511:94
The last will and last confession of martin Luther's faith co[n]cerming [sic] the [principal…The last wil and last confession of martyn luthers faith co[n]cerming [sic] the [principal…
The last will and last confession of martin Luther's faith co[n]cerming [sic] the [principal articles of religion which are in controversy, which he will defend & may[n]teine until his death, against the pope and the gates of hell draw[n] forth by him at the request of the princes of germany which have reformed their [sic] churches after the gospel, to be offered up at the next general council in all their names & now published before that all the world may have an evident testimony of his faith if it shall fortune him to dye before there be any such cou[n]cel, tra[n]slated out of latin beware of the pope & of his false prophets and bishops for they will come in sheep's clothing and in angels faces but yet inwardly they are ravening wolves [sic].The last wil and last confession of martyn luthers faith co[n]cerming [sic] the [principal articles of religion which are in controuersy, which he wil defend & mai[n]teine vntil his death, agaynst the pope and the gates of hell drawe[n] furth by him at the request of the princes of germany which haue reformed theier [sic] churches after the gospel, to be offred vp at the next general councel in all their names & now published before that all the world may haue an euydent testimony of his faith if it shal fortune him to dye before there be any such cou[n]cel, tra[n]slated out of latyn beware of the pope & of his false prophetes and bissopes for thei wil come in shepys clothing and in angels facys but yet inwardly thei are ravening wolnys [sic].
Wesel : D. van der Straten?, 1543
Title page typeset from the transcription.
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
Now if any man had done penance after this fashion even for the space of an hundred year yet he should never have known when he had done ⟨image 24⟩and performed perfect or sufficient penance. And this were nothing else than always to do penance and yet never to come unto penance. And herein did the court of rome help prettily to sucker the miserable church / and imagined pardons whereby he did remit penance and brought satisfaction enough / first particularly for viij. years / an hundred years & cete.
Now if any man had done penance after this fasshon euen for the space of an hundreth yeare yet he shuld neuer haue known whan he had done ⟨image 24⟩and performed perfight or sufficient penance. And this were nothing els than alweys to do penance and yet neuer to come vnto penance. And herein did the court of rome help pretily to sucker the miserable church / and imagyned pardos wherby he did remitt penance and brought satisfaccyon inough / first particularly for viij. yeares / an hundreth yeares & cete.
And he d•yded them by lumps among carnals and bishops / that some should have authority to grant an .C. years / some an C. Days of pardon.
And he d•yded them by lompes among carnals and bisshapes / that some shuld haue auctorite to grant an .C. yeares / some an C. Dayes of pardon.
But he reserved to him self alone to remit and pardon the whole penance or satisfaction. This thing when it began to smack well and to bring lucre to the purse / and again for as much as the merchandise and selling of bulls did prosper and proceed well and luckily / he imagined a Golden year or a year of grace which he would have no where but at Rome / and this year full remission of all penalties / punishments / penance and all manner of sins / and thither ran all men from all parts of the world to fetch pardon of the golden year. But who would not have desired to have been delivered from such an heavy & untollerable burden? This was even as much as to find & exalt all the treasures of the earth. But the pope continued daily in heaping many golden