selfe.MarginaliaMath. 22. Math. 22. who beyng  

asked of the Iewes, whether they should giue tribute to Cæsar, or no,MarginaliaExamples of Christes humble subiection. he bad them giue to Cæsar those thinges, that be his, and to God those thynges that be his, signifying that tribute was due to Cæsar/, and that their soules were due to God. &c.

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Also, in the xvij. of Mathew  

it appeareth that Christ bad Peter paye tribute for him and his Disciples, when it was demaunded of him.MarginaliaMath. 17. And why? Because he would not chaunge the order of obesaunce to worldly Princes due by their subiectes. &c.

An other example  

of Christ hee citeth out of the vj. of Iohn, where after Christ had fedde fiue thousand and moe, with a fewe loaues, and fewer fishes, and that the Iewes would haue taken him and made him their kyng, he fled frō them, and would not consent vnto them.MarginaliaIohn. 6. For the kyngdome (sayth he) that he came to set here in earth, was not a worldly and temporall kyngdome, but an heauenly and spirituall kyngdome, that is, to reigne spiritually by grace and fayth in the hartes of all Christen and faythfull people, of what degree, or of what nation so euer they be, and to turne all people and natiōs, which at his commyng were carnall and lyued after the lustes of the flesh, to be spirituall and to lyue after the lustes of the spirite, that Christ with his father of heauen, might reigne in the hartes of all men. &c.

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And here in these examples of Christes humilitie, farther is to be noted, how Christ the sonne of God did submit hymselfe, not onely to the rulers and powers of this world, but also deiected hymselfe and in a maner, became seruaunt to his owne Apostles: so farre of  

was he from all ambitious and pompous seekyng of worldly honour: For so it appeared in hym, not onely by washyng the feete of his Apostles, but also the same tyme a litle before his passion, when the Apostles fell at contention among them selues, who among them should be superiour, he settyng before them the example of his owne subiection, asketh this question: Who is superiour,  

Commentary     Close

Luke 22.27.

he that sitteth at the Table, or he that serueth at the Table? Is not he superiour that sitteth? but I am amngest you, as he that ministreth, and serueth. &c.MarginaliaLuke. 22.

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MarginaliaExamples of Peters subiectiō. The lyke examples Tonstall also inferreth of Peters humilitie. For where we read  

in the Actes, how the Centurion a noble man of great age, did prostrate hymselfe vpon the grounde at the feete of Peter: then Peter not sufferyng that eftsoones tooke him vp and bad him ryse, saying: I am also a man as thou art.MarginaliaAct. 10.

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So lykewise dyd the AungellMarginaliaApoc. 19. 22. Apocal. 19. and. 22.  

to whom when Iohn would haue fallen downe to haue adored hym whiche shewed hym those visions, the Aungell sayd vnto hym: See thou do not so, for I am the seruaunt of God, as thou art. &c.

Agayne in the foresayd Peter  

what an example of reuerent humilitie is to be sene in this, that notwithstandyng he with other Apostles hauyng his commission to go ouer all, yet neuerthelesse he beyng at Ioppa and sent for by Cornelius, durst not go to hym, without the vision of a sheete let downe from heauen, by the which vision he was admonished not to refuse the Gentiles: or els he knew in hymselfe no such primacie ouer all people and places geuen vnto hym, nor no such commission so large aboue the other. &c.

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Furthermore  

, the sayd Peter beyng rebuked of Paule his felow brother, tooke no scorne therof, but was content, submittyng himselfe to due correction.

MarginaliaThe popes obiections. But here,  

sayth Tonstall, steppeth in the B. of Rome and sayth that Peter had authoritie giuen aboue all the residue of the Apostles, & alledgeth the wordes of Christ spoken to him Matth. 16. Thou art Peter, and vpon this rocke I will builde my Church, and will gyue to thee, the keyes of the kingdome of heauē: and what soeuer thou shall binde vppon earth, shall be bound in heauen.MarginaliaMath. 16. This sayd Christ, sayth the Pope, and S. Peter is buryed at Rome   , whose successour I am, and ought to rule the Churche, as Peter did, and to be porter of heauen gates, as Peter was. &c.

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And Christ sayd  

also to Peter after his resurrection: Feede my shepe,MarginaliaIohn. 21. which he spake to him onely, so that therby he had authoritie ouer all that be of Christes flocke, and I as his successour, haue the same.MarginaliaThe ambitious pride of the pope. And therfore who so will not obey me, Kyng, or Prince, I will curse hym, and depriue him of hys kingdome or segniorie: For all power is giuen to me that Christ hath, and I am his Vicare generall, as Peter was here in earth, ouer all and none but I, as Christ is in heauen.

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MarginaliaThe scriptures falsely peruerted by the Pope. This ambitious and pompous obiection (sayth Tonstall) of the Pope, and his adherentes, hath of late yeares much troubled the world, and made dissension, debate, and open warre in all partes of Christendome, & all by a wrong interpretation of the Scripture. Who if he would take those places after the right sense of them, as both the Apostles themselues taught vs, and all the auncient best learned interpretours do expounde them, the matter were soone at a poynt. But otherwise, sith they peruert the Scripture, and preach an other Gospell in that point to vs, then euer the Apostles preached, we haue therin  

a generall rule to folow: That though an Aungell came from heauen, and would tell vs such new expositiōs of those places, as are now made, to turne the wordes, which weare spoken for spirituall authoritie of preachyng the word of God, and ministryng of the Sacramēts, to a worldly authoritie, we ought to reiecte him, as S. Paule willeth vs. Gal. 1.MarginaliaGal. 1.

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To open therfore the true sense of the Scripture in the places aforesayd, and first to begyn  

with the. xvj. Chapter of Matthew here is to be obserued that þ^e questiō beyng put in generall of Christ to all his Apostles, what they thought or iudged of hym, Peter aunsweryng for them all, as hee was alwayes ready to aunswere, sayd: Thou art Christ, the Sonne of the lyuyng God. To whom Iesus aunswered agayne: Blessed be thou Symon the Sonne of Iona: for flesh and bloud hath not reueled this vnto thee, but my Father which is in heauen: And I say to thee, thou art Peter, and vpon this rocke I will builde my Church, and the gates of hell shall not preuayle agaynst it.MarginaliaThe place of Math. 16. expounded. That is to say:   vpon this rocke of thy cōfession of me to be the Sonne of God, I will build my Church: for this faiyh conteyneth the whole summary of our fayth and saluation, as it is writen Rom. 10.MarginaliaRom. 10.
Faith the mother of saluation. The worde of fayth, that we do preache is at hand, in thy mouth and in thine hart. For if thou cōfesse with thy mouth our Lord Iesus Christ, & with thy hart do beleue that God raysed him from death to lyfe, thou shalt be saued. &c.MarginaliaPeter the first confesser of Christ. And this confession beyng first vttered by the mouth of Peter, vpon the same confession of his, and not vpon the person of Peter, Christ buildeth his Church, as Chrisostome expoundeth   that place in the. xxvj. Sermon of the feast of Pentecost, saying:MarginaliaThe church builded vpō the confessiō of Peter, not vpon the person of Peter. Not vpō the persō of Peter, but vpō the fayth, Christ hath builded his Churche. And what is the fayth? This: Thou art Christ the Sonne of the liuyng God. What is to say, vpon this rocke? That is, vpon this confession of Peter. &c. And with this saying of Chrisostome, all aūcieēt expositours, sayth Tonstall treatyng that place, do agree. For if we should expoūd that place, that the church is builded vpō the person of Peter, we should put an other fundation of the Church, then Christ, which is directly agaynst   S. Paule, saying: No man may put any other foundation, but that which is put already, which is Christ Iesus. &c.Marginalia1. Cor. 3.

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And because Peter was the first of all the Apostles, that confessed this, that Christ is the Sonne of God, by the which fayth all men must be saued: thereof commeth the primacie, that is, the first place or standyng of Peter in the number of all the Apostles.

MarginaliaWhat is the primacie of Peter and how it commeth. And as Peter was the first of them that confessed Christ to be the sonne of God, so was he most ardent in his fayth, most bold and hardy in Christ, as appeared by  

hys commyng out of the shyppe in the great tempest, and also most vehement in his maisters cause, as appeared by   drawyng out hys sword, and after the Lordes resurrection, is declared in the 2. 3. 4. chapter of the Actes: where as the Iewes withstandyng the Apostles preachyng the fayth of Christ,MarginaliaThe honorable names of Peter in the olde Doctors, how and wherfore they be geuē. Peter as most ardent in fayth, was euer most ready to defend the fayth agaynst the impugners therof, speakyng for them all vnto the people. &c. and therfore hath these honorable names giuen him, by the auncient interpreters, that some tymes he is called the mouth of the Apostles, the chief of the Apostles, some tyme the Prince of the Apostles, some tyme the President of the whole Church, & some time hath the name of primacie, or prioritie attributed to him.

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And yet the sayd Peter notwithstandyng these honorable names giuen vnto hym, that he should not haue a rule, or a iudicial power  

aboue all the other Apostles, it is playne by S. Paul, and many other.

MarginaliaGala. 2.
The authoritie of the Apostles all a lyke. First, S. Paule Gal. 2. playnly declareth the same, saying: That as the Apostleshyp of the Circumcision, that is, of the Iewes, was giuē by Christ to Peter: so was the Apostleshyp of the Gentiles giuen to me among the Gentiles. Hereby it appeareth that Paule knew no primacie of Peter concernyng people & places, but among the Iewes. And therof S. Ambrose  

expoundyng that place, sayth thus:MarginaliaAmbrosius. The primacie of the Iewes was giuen chiefly to Peter, albeit Iames & Iohn were ioyned with hym: as the primacie of the Gentiles was giuē to Paul, albeit Barnabas was ioyned with him: So that Peter had not a rule ouer all.

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Also in the Actes  

10. when Peter was sent for to Cornelius a Gentile, he durst not go to hym without a speciall vision giuen hym from heauen by the Lord.MarginaliaAct. 10.

Item, that all  

the Apostles had like dignitie and authoritie, it appeareth by S. Paule Ephe. 2. Where he sayth: Now ye are not straungers, nor foreners but ye be Citizens with the Saints and of the houshold of almighty God, builded (sayth he) vpon the foundation of the Apostles, and the Prophetes, Christ beyng the corner stone: vpō whom eueryMarginaliaEphes. 2.
The church founded not of Peter onely, but of the Apostles

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