A Christian instruction, containing the law and the Gospel Also a summary of the…A Christian instruction, conteyning the law and the Gospell Also a summarie of the…

D. Thou hast well answered: thou doest then see here how that this commandment hath his foundation in the first table, in such sort that if thou dishonour thy father, thou doest not only dishonour that man which is thy carnal father, but in him doest thou dishonour God thy eternal father, of whom the carnal father is nothing else but an Image or instrument, toward whom thou declarest of what affection thou art towards him whom he representeth, and the more near that this image is to thee, and the more near thou drawest to the nature of it, and that God doth more familiarly and more plenteously communicate unto thee his loving kindness by this instrument, and the more that he maketh his image to shine in him, so much the more is thy wickedness & iniquity the greater, but if it should so come to pass that thy father should be untrue toward god, & should require of thee a thing, wherein thou couldest not obey him, unless thou shouldest disobey God, thou art not at all in any thing bound unto him in such a case, for in such ⟨p. 513⟩a case thou art dispensed with in the first table, & by the interpretation & true meaning of the same. For seeing that the honour which thou owest to thy father, doth comprehend the honour of god, & is grounded upon the same, it is certain that if god be dishonoured in that which thy father requireth of thee, thou doest not honour him at all in such sort as thou art commanded by god to honour him, if thou do it in such sort as thy father requireth thee to do, for thy father cannot be truly honoured, in that wherein god is dishonoured, but is dishonoured in that wherein god is dishonoured, although that men cannot always understand & know it. Therefore when thy father doth command thee any thing, thou oughtest to have good regard to the nature of the thing which he commandeth thee to do, if it be a thing that thou mayest do without offence toward God and thine own conscience, seek by all means possible to please him, for the honour of him that doth so command thee, how hard soever it be to do:

D. Thou hast well aunswered: thou doest then see here howe that this commaundement hath his foundation in the firste table, in such sorte that if thou dishonor thy father, thou doest not only dishonor that man which is thy carnall father, but in him doest thou dishonor God thy eternall father, of whome the carnall father is nothing else but an Image or instrumente, towarde whome thou declarest of what affection thou arte towards him whome he representeth, and the more neare that this image is to thée, and the more neare thou drawest to the nature of it, and that God doth more familiarly and more plenteously communicate vnto thee his louing kindnesse by this instrument, and the more that he maketh his image to shyne in him, so muche the more is thy wickednesse & iniquitie the greater, but if it should so come to passe that thy father shuld be vntrue toward god, & should require of thée a thing, wherin thou couldest not obey him, vnlesse thou shouldest disobey God, thou arte not at all in any thing bound vnto him in such a case, for in such