Letter

in good part ; for,in my great haste,the pen has run away with me, and I have no more time, for I am anxious to be there myself,if God will.

Grace must not trouble with my affairs.

Electoral Highness's humble servant, Borna on the way to Wittenberg,in answer to a letter from the Elector,tryingto dissuade

His courage is displayed.

Grace's writingand kind remembrance reached me on Fridayevening,the nightbefore I began my journey. That your Highnesshad the best intentions towards me is manifest.

And this is my answer.

Most graciouslord, I herewith desire to make it known that I have not received the gospelfrom men, but from heaven, through our

I may well (which I shall henceforth do) gloryin beingable to stylemyselfa servant and evangelist.

I desired to be cited before a human tribunal to have my cause tried was not because I had any doubts as to its truth,but solelybecause

I wished to allure others.

I see my great humilityonly serves to abase the gospel, and that Satan is readyto occupy the placeI vacate, even if it be onlyby a hand-breadth,my conscience compels me to act differently.

I have done sufficientfor your Grace this year in remainingin my forced seclusion.

For the devil knows it was not done out of fear.

He saw into my heart,when I came into Worms, that although I had known there were as many devils ready to spring upon me as there were tiles on the house-roofs,I would joyfully have sprung into their midst.

Herzog George is far from beingequalto one devil,especially seeingthe His lovingkindness,made us, throughthe gospel,joyouslords over all the devils and death itself, and has permittedus to call him beloved

Grace can see for yourself that it would be the greatestinsult one could pay to such a Him entirely, showing that we are lords over Leipsicas they are in Wittenberg,I would nevertheless ride in,even if it were to rain Herzog Georgesfor nine days,and each was nine times more vehement than this one is.

Jesusas a man of straw.

I confess I have often wept and prayed for Herzog George that God would enlighten him.

I shall once more weep and pray for him, and then never again.

Electoral Highness to help me to pray that we may be able to avert the judgment which is hangingover him continually.

I write all this to let your Grace see that I come to Wittenberg under higher protectionthan that of the I have not the slightest intention of asking your

I am more able to protect your Grace than you are to protect me ; and, what is more, if I knew that your gracious Highnesscould and would protect me

God alone must manage without any human intervention.

Therefore he whose faith is greatest will receive the most protection.So,as I see your faith is very weak, I cannot regard you as the man who could either protect or save me.

Grace wishes to know how to act, as you seem to fancyyou have done too little, I would respectfully inform you that you have alreadydone too much, and must now do nothingat all.

God will not suffer your Electoral Highnesses or my worryingand activities.

He wishes it to be left to Him and no other, so let your Grace act accordingly.

Electoral Highness believes this,then he will be in security and peace I do and must allow your Grace to be tormented by care, which is the portionof all who do not believe.

Therefore,seeingI decline to follow your Grace, then you are innocent in God's sightif I am taken prisoner or killed.

Electoral Highnessshall henceforth act thus loo regardingyour duty towards me as You must render obedience to the powers that be, and sustain the authorityof His

ImperialMajestywith all your might,as is onlyseemlyfor a member of the Empire,and not oppose the authorities in the event of their imprisoning or slaying me.

For no one must oppose the authorities except He who has instituted them ; for it is rebellion againstGod.

I hope they will be sensible, and recognisethat your Highness is born in a highercradle,and should not be expectedto wield the rod upon yourself.

Grace abide by the Electoral safe-conduct, then you have done enough to show your obedience.

Christ has not taught me to be a Christian to the injury of others.

But should they command your Grace to layhands on me yourself, then I shall say what to do.

I shall protect you from injuryto body,soul,and estate because of my affairs, whether your Grace believes it or not.

I herewith commit you to the mercy of God, and shall discuss thingswhen necessary.

I have written this hurriedly, so that your Grace may not be upset by my arrival ; for I must rather be a comfort to every one than occasion of injuryif I wish to be a true

I am dealingwith a very different man from George,with one who knows me well,and whom I do not know at all badly.

Grace only to believe he would see the gloryof God, but as he has not yet believed,he has seen nothing. To God be love and praise to all eternity.Amen.

Electoral Grace's obedient servant, Luther's touchingletter to the piouslawyerin Strassburg.

I take it for granted,my beloved Gerbel,that you got my letter from the desert throughPhilip, but although you have not answered it,I cannot let your good clerk

Christian love are not visible,St.

Paul's words being inverted, We have the kingdom of God in words, but not in power."

I cannot come to you, for it is not right to tempt God by needlesslyrunninginto danger,especially as I have enough here; beingattacked through the ImperialEdict,and enjoyas much freedom as the birds of the air,whose onlyprotection is God

I see that many of our monks leave the cloister for the same reason they enter it,viz. to indulgetheir sensual appetites, through which Satan bringsthe gospelinto evil repute.

But theyare idle creatures, so are better to go to ruin without the cowl than beneath it.

Greet all friends, for I do not know who may be with you justnow.

Carry our cause and the lifeof our Elector to the Lord in prayer, else I fear he may not be able to hold out long. And if this our head were away, there might be an end to the salvation which Luther wishes names of preciousstones.

I send you the letter you were expecting, my Spalatin.I cannot remember what John Frederick,except that I advised him not to introduce innovations unless it could be done without giving offence to the weak, and that all must be done in love.

I wrote the same to Herzog I have not only translated the Patmos, but the whole of the I are now busy correctingit,and, with God's help,it will be a splendidwork.

Meantime we need your help,to find out proper words, therefore be readyto supply us with the common terms for some thingswe require, but not those used at Court, for this book is to be written in the simplestlanguagethat all may understand it ; and so that I may beginat once, send the names of the precious stones mentioned in Rev. chap,xxi.,and would that you could get permissionfrom

Court to let us have the loan of some to see what they are like.

I am busy with a treatise upon the gospelmethod of receiving the sacrament, and althoughit is a most troublesome pieceof work, yet I am not afraid.

Christ lives,and for His sake one must not only be a sweet savour in them that are saved,as well as in them that perish, but also be willingto be slain for Farewell,and greet all at Luther sends lettersfrom the Low

Countries about goodworks.

Grace and peace in the I herewith send you what Jacob,the Prior of Antwerp, who was delivered by a miracle,and is now with us, broughtme from the Netherlands.

John'slast sermon, with other things.

I fancyAmsdorf has answered your inquiries as to good works ; for one singlepassage lights up the whole.

An evil tree cannot bringforth good fruit.

For as the fruit can never make a tree good, so works can never make a man pious. On the contrary, accordingto the tree, so is necessarily the fruit ; thus it is after the man is piousthat good works follow,not that they make him good,but they prove that he is good.

So what the Bible says concerningood works must be thus understood,that the man does not become good thereby, but that they testify he is good.

Therefore,at the last day Christ will cite good works in proof that those who practised them were pious. Farewell,and pray for me.

There is nothing new here except the Chancellor of Baden's booklet against me, because I exposedhim for twisting my meaning to the Bishopof Trier,as you are aware.