MarginaliaThe rudenes of the countrey priestes.

he, God knoweth: whiche haue sene no more Latine then that onely which they read in theyr Portesses & Missalles: (whiche yet many of them can scarsely read) excepte it bee Albertus de secretis mulierum  

, in whiche yet though they be neuer so sorily learned, they pore day and night, and make notes therin, and all to teach the mydwyues, as they saye: and also another called Lynwod   , a booke of constitutions to gather tythes, mortuaries, offringes, customes, and other pillage, whiche they call not theirs, but Gods parte, the duetie of holy Churche, to discharge their consciences withall. For they are bound that they shall not diminishe but encrease all thynges vnto the vttermost of theyr powers, which perteyne to holy church.MarginaliaTyndall troubled by the priestes of the countrey. Thus these blynd and rude Priestes flockyng together to the Alehouse (for that was their preachyng place) raged and rayled agaynst hym, affirmyng þ^t hys sayinges were heresie: addyng moreouer vnto hys sayinges of their owne heades, more then euer he spake, and so accused hym secretly to the Chauncellour and other of the Byshops Officers.

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It folowed not long after this, that there was a sitting of the byshops Chauncellour appointed  

, and warning was giuen to the priestes to appeare: amongest whom M. Tyndall was also warned to be there. And whether he had any misdoubt by there threatnynges, orMarginaliaTyndall called before the byshops Chauncellor. knowledge geuen him that they woulde lay some thynges to his charge it is vncerteine: but certeine this is (as hee him selfe declared) that hee doubted their priuie accusations: so that he by the way in goyng thether wardes, cryed in hys mynde hartly to God, to geue hym strength fast to stand in the truth of hys worde.

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Then when the time came of his apperaunce before the Chauncellour, hee threatned hym greuously, reuilyng and ratyng hym as though he had bene a dogge, and layd to his charge many thynges,MarginaliaTyndall could not haue his accusers brought out. whereof no accuser yet could bee brought forth (as commonly their maner is, not to bryng foorth the accuser) notwithstandyng that the Priestes of þ^e countrey the same tyme were there present. And thus M. Tyndall after those examinations escapyng out of their handes, departed home and returned to his maister agayne.

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MarginaliaOne good olde doctour amongst many nought. There dwelt not farre of a certeine Doctour that hadde bene an old Chauncellour before to a Byshop, who hadd bene of olde familiar acquayntance with M. Tyndall and also fauored hym well. Vnto whom Maister Tyndall went and opened hys mynde vpon diuers questions of the Scripture: for to hym he durst bee bold to disclose his hart.MarginaliaThe Pope Antichrist. Vnto whom the Doctour sayd: doe you not know that the Pope is very Antichrist, whom the Scripture speaketh of But beware what you say: for if you shalbe perceiued to be of that opinion, it will cost you your lyfe: and sayd moreouer, I haue bene an officer of hys, But I haue gyuen it vp and defie hym and all his workes.

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It was not long after, but M. Tyndall happened to be in the company of a certaine Diuine recounted for a learned man, and in commoning and disputyng with him, he droue him to that issue,MarginaliaThe blasphemie of a blynd doctor. that the said great Doctour burst out into these blasphemous wordes, and sayd:MarginaliaThe Popes law preferred before Gods lawe. wee were better to be without Gods lawe then the Popes. M. Tyndall hearyng thys, full of godly zeale and not bearyng that blasphemous saying, replyed agayne and sayd: I defie the Pope and al hys lawes: and further added that if God spared him lyfe, ere many yeares he woulde cause a boy that driueth þ^e plough to know more of the Scripture, then he dyd.

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After this þ^e grudge of the Priestes increasing still more and more agaynst Tyndall, they neuer ceased barkyng and ratyng at him, and layd many sore thynges to his charge, saying that he was an hereticke in Sophistry, an hereticke in Logicke, and an hereticke in Diuinitie: and sayd moreouer to hym that he bare hymselfe bolde of the Gentlemen there in that countrey: but notwithstandyng, shortly hee shoulde be otherwise talked withall. To whom M. Tyndall aunsweryng agayne thus sayd: þ^t he was contented they should bryng him into any countrey in all Englād, giuyng hym x. l. a yere to lyue with, and byndyng hym to no more but to teach children and to preache.

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To be short, M. Tyndall beyng so molested and vexed in þ^e countrey by the Priestes, was constrayned to leaue that countrey and to seke an other place:MarginaliaTyndall departeth from M. Welche. and so commyng to M. Welche he desired hym of his good will, that hee myght departe from hym, saying on this wise to hym: Syr I perceaue I shall not be suffered to tarye long here in this coūtrey, neither shall you be hable though you woulde, to kepe me out of the handes of the spiritualtie, and also what displeasure might grow therby to you by kepyng me, God knoweth: for the which I shoulde be right sorye. So that in fine, M. Tyndall with the good will of his master, departed andMarginaliaTyndall cōmeth to London. eftsoones came vp to London, and there preached a while, accordyng as he had done in the countrey before, and speciallye about the towne of Bristowe, and also in the sayd towne, in the common place called Saint Austins Greene  

. At length hee bethinkyng hym selfe of Cuthbert Tonstall then Byshop of London, and especially for the great commendatiō of Erasmus, who in his annotations so extolleth hym for hys learning, thus cast w ^t himselfe, that if he might attayne vnto his seruice he were a happy man. And so cōmyng to Syr Henry Gilford the kynges Controler, and bryngyng with hymMarginaliaAn oration of Isocrates trāslated out of Greke into Englishe by W. Tyndall. an Oration of Isocrates, whiche hee had then translated out of Greke into Englishe, hee desired hym to speake to the sayd B. of London for hym. Which he also dyd   , and willed him moreouer to wryte an Epistle to þ^e Byshop, and to go hym selfe with hym.MarginaliaTyndall sueth to byshop Tonstall to be his Chaplaine. Which he dyd lykewise, and deliuered his Epistle to a seruaunt of hys named William Hebilthwaite, a man of hys olde acquayntaunce. But God who secretly disposeth the course of thynges saw that was not best for Tyndals purpose nor for þ^e profite of hys Churche, and therfore gaue him to finde litle fauor in the Bishops sight.MarginaliaTonstall refuseth M. Tyndall. The aunswere of whom was this, that his house was full: he had mo then he could well finde, and aduised hym to seeke in London abroade, where he sayd he coulde lacke no seruice. &c. and so remayned he in London the space almost of a yeare, beholdyng and markyng with hym selfe the course of the world, and especially the demeanour of the preachers, how they boasted them selues and set vp their authoritie and kingdome: beholdyng also the pompe of the Prelates, with other thynges moe whiche greatly mislyked him: In so much that he vnderstode, not onely there to be no rowme in the Byshops house for hym to translate the new Testament: but also that there was no place to do it in all England. And therfore findyng no place for hys purpose within the realme, and hauyng some ayde and prouision, by Gods prouidence ministred vnto him by Humphrey Mummoth aboue recited   as you may see before pag, 970. and certeine other good men,MarginaliaTyndall departeth into Germany. he tooke his leaue of the realme and departed into Germanie. Where the good man beyng inflamed with a tender care and zeale of hys countrey, refused no trauell nor diligence how by all meanes possible, to reduce hys brethren and countreymen of England to the same tast and vnderstandyng of Gods holy word and veritie, which the Lord had endued hym withall.

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MarginaliaThe causes mouing Tyndall to translate the scripture into the Englishe tounge. Whereupon he consydering in hys mynde, and partely also conferryng with Iohn Frith, thought with him selfe no way more to conduce therunto, then if the Scripture were turned into the vulgar speache, that the poore people might also reade and see the simple playen worde of God. For fyrst he wisely castyng in hys mynde, perceyued by experience, how that it was not possible to stablyshe the lay people in any truth, except the Scripture were so playnly layed before theyr eyes in theyr mother tongue, that they myght see the processe, order, and meanyng of the texte: For els what so euer truth should be taught them, these enemies of the truth woulde quenche it agayne, eyther w^t apparant reasons of sophistry, and traditions of theyr owne makyng, founded without all grounde of scripture: eyther els iugglyng with the texte, expoundyng it in such a sense as impossible it were to gather of the texte, if the right processe, order, and meanyng therof were seene.

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MarginaliaHyding of Scripture the cause of mischiefe. Agayne, right wel he perceyued and considered this onely or most chiefly to be the cause of all mischiefe in the Church that the Scriptures of God were hydden from the peoples eyes: For so long the abominable doynges and Idolatries maynteyned by the Pharisaicall Clergye, could not be espyed, and therfore all theyr labour was with myght and mayne to kepe it downe so that eyther it shoulde not be read at all, or if it were, they would darken the right sense with the myste of theyre sophistrye, and so entangle them whiche rebuked or despised theyr abominations, with arguments of philosophy, and with worldly similitudes, and apparant reasons of naturall wisedom: and with wrestyng the scripture vnto theyr owne purpose, contrary vnto the processe, order, and meanyng of the texte, woulde so delude them in descantyng vpon it with allegories, and amaze them, expoūding it in many senses layed before the vnlearned laye people, that thoughe thou felte in thy harte, and were sure that all were false that they sayd yet couldest not thou solue theyr subtell rydels.

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For these and such other considerations, thys good man was moued (and no doubt styrred vp of God) to translate the Scripture in to his mother tongue, for the publicke vtilitie and profite of ā simple vulgar people of his countrey:MarginaliaThe new testament and the fiue bookes of Moyses translated with Tyndalles prologues. fyrst, settyng in hand with the new Testament, whiche hee fyrst translated about the yeare of our Lord. 1527. After þ^t he tooke in hand to translate the olde Testament, finishyng the fiue bookes of Moyses, with sondry most learned and godly prologues prefixed before euery one, most worthy to be reade and read agayne of all good Christians: as the like also he dyd vpon the new Testament.

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He wrote also diuers other workes vnder sundrye titles among the whiche is that most worthy monument of