A treatise of the cohabitacyon of the faithfull with the vnfaithfull. / Whereunto is added. A sermon made of the confessing of Christe and his gospell, and of the denyinge of the same.

by Pietro Martire Vermigli; Heinrich Bullinger

A confutation of the places alledged. Nowe this is remayning / that I sholde answer vnto those reasons which were put forthe at the begynning to proue that the dwelling together of the

faithfull with the vnfaithfull is lawfull / and confute them. Firste / the example of Christ is set against vs / which dyd eate and drinke familiarlye with scribes / pharisees / publicanes / and synners. We muste remembre that Christe was not only stronge / but the chiefe heade of all them shich be stronge. He coulde so profyte them which were euell / that theyr euill shuld not hurte him / and therfore might vse familiaritie with the wicked. Euen so there is no cause to the contrarie / but that they whiche be learned and constante in the truthe / suche as can profit the vnfaithfull by their cõuersation and familiar being with them / and not be hurt by it them selues (as we haue admonished before) may be conuersaunt with the vnbeleauers and wicked.

The seconde place is / 1. Cor. 7. Paule wolde not that the faithfull maried vnto an vnbeleuer sholde departe / yf the vnbeleuer will dwell together with the other. This I do also acknowledge / as befor I haue said: for vnto thẽ / al necessary businesses / especially those which are ordeyned of God / are to be done. And yet in that place which is here alledged / Paule is not so to be vnderstanded without exception / as these mẽ do iudge: for yf the vnbeleuĩg maried parson / shold cõtinually moue the faithfull to Idolatrie / or sholde not cease to blaspheme Christ / and prouoke the other to cõmit like blasphemie / so lõg as thei did liue together / this ioynt life in mariadge were not to be cõtinued: for this were not to dwell together / but to conspire together against Christ: Paule therfor speaketh

of suche cohabitacion as is laufull without suche soliciting or mouinge to euell and blasphemye.

An other sentence of Paule is broughte which he writeth to the Corinthians / 1. Cor. 5. where he teacheth that all couetous parsons / euill speakers / dronckardes / whoremũgars / and such lyke are not to be auoided / for then sholde they haue gone out of the worlde.
But he wold / that we sholde kepe our selues frõ thẽ / which being called brethren / are infected with these vices. As concerninge this place / we must consider the mynde and purpose of Paule. Firste he dyd perceyue that for the necessitie of lyfe it coulde not be that the faithfull shulde auoyde the companie of all which at that tyme were vnbeleuers / for the greater part of men at that ceason was without Christ / and they beinge auoided of our men / coulde not therby haue bene made the better / But into thẽ which before were bretheren / bothe sorowe and shame was dryuen / when they dyd see that they wer now shonned of the godlye / to whome as they were before righte deare / so with them they were familiar. And by this meanes the church was not euill reported / neither for clokinge of euill among themselues / nor for to seuere separatinge themselues from them which were not yet conuerted: seing that they lyued with the vnbeleuers / partly for the necessitie of lyfe / partlye to turne them to the gospell of Christ: wherfore this sentence doth make nothing at all agaynst those thinges which we haue alreadye spoken.

Moche lesse maketh that for them which they do

bringe in / Gene. 12. that Abraham did becomme a straungier amõg the heathẽ and Idolatours: first that which Abraham dyd / euen by the callinge and commaundmente of God he dyd it. Againe he was of suche knowledge and constãcie in the truithe that he coulde be conuersaũte whith the vnbeleauers with out hurtinge of him selfe / and wyth moche profyting of thẽ. For he caryed aboute with him the name of god ãd his holy ãd true worship / whither so euer he wẽt. And the very same thing / maie we answer of Lot.

5 Gene. 13. For if Lot went to Sodome / with a Good mynde to teache thẽ true faithe and godlie life / he owght not to be accused therfore / for it was well done / yea it was the prouidence of God towards the Sodomyts / that they mighte be better taughte / and ernestly caled vnto repẽtance. So dothe God admonishe before he destroieth. So Abraham was sent amonge the Cananites. On this sorte to go amõge the wicked / and vnbeleuers is lawfull and laudable. But if Lot went to Sodõ only because the pleasaunte commodytie of the place pleased him / he dyd not wel. Neither indede dyd his going thither happen luckelie / for he was led awaye captiue / so that he was in nede to be rescued again by Abraham. Gene. 14. And likewise when God burned the Cytie / he was compelled euen against his will to forsake it.

Of Naaman I shall not nede to speake nowe / 6 for of him I haue spokẽ inough before. 7 I suppose lykewise that the cause is opẽ and plaine inoughe / wherfore manye of them which were healed of Christe

were sent frõ him to their own coũtrie / and kindred / to publishe and declare and amõge thẽ / what hade happened vnto thẽ. This nowe remayneth / that I sholde peculiarlie speake of the Iues / and heretikes. For these too kindes of mẽ do in all places this daye liue amonge / and do dwell togither wyth the Christians.