An answer to a certain book, writtenAn answere to a certeine booke, written

First¹ fathers and councils are by them (you say) not regarded: which I grant may well be, that such wicked men will regard neither fathers nor Councils: but this can not be understood of us, who have the fathers and the Councils in such reverence and regard, as meet is we should. Then Saint James is also by them rejected, as contrary to Saint Paul. §2They that reject Saint James, be they Antinomi, or whosoever, let them answer for it them selves, this appertaineth not unto us: but ⟨p. 349⟩hereof hath been said enough before. Thirdly, the epistle to the Hebrews is denied by Beza and Calvin to be Saint Paul. What then? §3is it denied therefore to be holy scripture? And for Illyricus, he is so far from denying this Epistle to be Canonical scripture, that he thinketh the same to be written by Saint Paul himself, and to be amongst excellent and necessary part of the Scripture, as you may read in his preface upon that epistle. Fourthly, §4Saint Peters place is brought in, which helpeth little,² whether we read the words (by good works) according to the latin translation, or leave them out, according to the greek verity. That our calling & election is confirmed by good works, maketh nothing against justification by faith. Will you say we are elected and called by our works? that is gross heresy, worse then Pelagianism. But Saint Peter biddeth us to make our vocation and election sure by good works, and yet you know your selves and grant, that our vocation and election is wrought without any means of good works, because we are elected before the world, and before our vocation our works were only ⟨p. 350⟩wicked, what maketh all this then for merit of good works, that they are testimonies and arguments of our election and effectual vocation?³ §5