O my wife, I confess here before you and before all that read this, that I have written you here, far too feebly and miserably; nevertheless, the great anxiety and deep affliction, which rises from my strong love for you four, impelled me to it. But I hope that you will accept it from me for the sake of the truth; and, my dear wife, please hear my answer in regard to what you had asked me, as to what advice I would give you concerning the traveling. I say, I give you no advice with regard to it, since I do not know an opportunity at present; but I would most urgently entreat you, that, if it be possible for you to gain some sort of a livelihood here, that you remain until the matter is decided with me one way or the other, and this for no other reason, but that I might still hear from you now and then, for a greeting from you is more precious to me than much silver or gold. And, my wife, please know, that Kalleken Meere, who is imprisoned with me, has made you a bequest, namely, a shift, a necklace, a night neckerchief, and a hair-lace; and Mijntgen also gives you a night neckerchief, a neck-cloth, and her best apron. This they give to you for their remembrance and testament; after their death it is yours, and they cordially greet you with the peace of the Lord. Amen.
Written in my bonds, by me, your dear husband and brother in the Lord.
Jacob van den Wege.
ANOTHER LETTER FROM JACOB VAN DEN WEGE, TO HIS WIFE, AND HIS BRETHREN AND SISTERS.
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. Luke 2:14.
I, Jacob van den Wege, imprisoned for the invincible truth, wish my dear in God beloved wife and sister in the Lord, and my three innocent little children; and further all brethren and sisters, and all my dear friends in the Lord, grace, peace, mercy, much true Christian wisdom and prudence, an understanding heart, a steadfast mind in the truth, a strong faith, a living hope, a good, peaceful conscience toward God and man, and an unblamable, holy conversation in all humility, meekness, kindness and unity, and all this in the true fear of God bound with the bond of love. This I wish you all from God the heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ his eternal, only, true Son, our Lord, together with the mighty power of the Holy Ghost, as a cordial and affectionate greeting. Amen.
After my simple, cordial salutation, my beloved wife, and all brethren and sisters, and further all my friends in the Lord, let me please inform you, that it is still well with me, and I am unchanged in the faith and knowledge of God, even as I was when I bowed my knees before the Most High, so I am minded; and still stand through the grace of God, and the power of Christ, which strengthens me, to live or die with Christ in this same faith and truth. The almighty Lord, who is able so to strengthen and confirm him that is miserable, weak, and without strength here in this conflict, to him be praise, thanks, glory, and honor forever and ever, and this for all his great benefits which he has so abundantly shown me. So I trust that it is also very well with you, on which account I rejoiced, and thank God the Most High, for all his great goodness that he has shown you, and all this through his great mercy and love; and I pray the same almighty Lord and God of grace, to bless you all, and to fill you with all knowledge and spiritual wisdom and understanding, that you may walk worthily and fruitfully all the days of your life in holiness and righteousness, and receive the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.
Let me further, please, tell my dear friends the reason why I have been so backward in writing, when you have so many times requested of me, that I should write to you. Hence I tell you, that I hardly dare write anything, and this because it is such a perilous time, so that people sometimes understand and construe a letter as they will, and not as the writer has meant it. Even as I have only too much known this to be the case, and it has even happened to me, in my simple writing. Not that I mean that I am above criticism; God forbid! but I say that some people find fault not only with the letters of simple prisoners, but sometimes also with the holy Scriptures; and since I also know myself far too simple and ignorant, to write anything profitable for your exhortation, therefore I have always refused them that requested it of me, and have thus far put it off. And were it not for my innocent little children, who to-day understand neither good nor evil, I should not have written much yet; but they constrain me to write now, in order that when they come to the years of understanding through the grace of God, and I shall then have been taken from them, the same might then teach them of my faith, and instruct them in righteousness and the knowledge of God, in the fear of the Lord, and in all obedience. And since I must walk the way, and obey the vocation in which I am called, and I can then not admonish them with my lips, I write and leave them this much for a treasure and testament; for gold or silver I cannot give them, but such as God has given me, which is little, but yet more than I am worthy of; this I leave them for an exhortation, that they may also know most assuredly and certainly by my own writing, in what doctrine and faith I died, and that I did not suffer for any misdeed or wickedness, or heresy, as one that follows his own mind and purpose (though I am called a heretic by this evil generation, who imagine that they are pure, and are yet not washed from their filth; but their railing is no proof, and their calumny is untruth); for I well know and am sure that all who follow their own mind and purpose do not keep God’s commandments; for the Scriptures teach us, that we must be spiritually minded, as Jesus Christ was, that we must be obedient and deny ourselves, yea, utterly and completely renounce our own will, and bow ourselves under the word and the mighty hand of God, which word is like a fire, and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces, yea, as a two-edged sword, which shall judge men in the last day. Rom. 8:6; Philippians 2:5; Matt. 16:24; 6:10; 1 Pet. 5:6; Jeremiah 23:29; Rev. 1:16; John 12:48. Hence I say that I have submitted myself, to obey the same with all my power and ability, to suffer myself to be instructed by it, to believe what the Scriptures say; for I believe all that is written in the law and the prophets, both in the Old and the New Testaments; and have hope toward God, for which the prophets themselves waited, namely, that there shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust; and herein do I exercise myself, always to have a conscience void of offense toward God and toward men (Acts 24:14–16); thus my faith, which God has given me, is as the word of God, and like the Scriptures, as here briefly follows:
In the first place, I believe and confess one only, eternal, almighty God the Father, of whom are all things. Him I confess to be a living God, who created and made heaven, earth, the sea, and all that in them is, even as both the Old and New Testaments highly extol and worship him in his worthiness; as an invisible and immortal God, a God of gods, a Lord above all lords, a great God, mighty and most terrible, who sits upon his throne, a Lord unto whom there is none like, for he is higher than the heavens, deeper than hell, longer than the earth, and wider than the sea, as he himself by the prophet says: “The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool.” Rightly has Jeremiah said: “Thou great and mighty God, the Lord of hosts, is thy name; great in counsel, and mighty in work. For behold, the heaven and heaven of heavens can not contain him.” Hence I also say, that a creature can not comprehend the Creator, but I confess him to be a holy, true, gracious, merciful, but also a severe, righteous and just God, before whom alone we must tremble and fear, fall down and worship, and love and obey him; who shall render unto every one according to his works, whether they be good or bad, either salvation or damnation. Mark 12:29; Is. 40:28; Gen. 17:1; 1 Cor. 8:6; Gen. 1; John 1:18; 1 Tim. 6:16; Deut. 10:17; Ps. 139:8. Is. 66:1; Jer. 32:19; 1 Kings 8:27; Lev. 19:2; Ps. 7:11; Matt. 4:10; 2 Cor. 5:10.
In the second place, I confess and believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only, own, true Son, our Lord, who was with the Father from the beginning and from everlasting, whom the Father has imbued with his real essence, and expressly set forth the same in him, as is everywhere fundamentally contained and declared in the Scriptures; so that he is the image of the eternal light, the immaculate reflection of the divine glory, and the likeness or image of his being. So that when he was in the form of God, he was glorified as God, yea, the wisdom and word of God himself, in whom alone was life, the firstborn of every creature, invisible, impassable, and immortal, through whom all things were created and made; he is before all, and all is in him, so that he is Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, the first and the last, who is, and who was, and who is to come; even thus do I confess the Son of God in his divinity as the eternal true Son of God, true God with the Father, equal with him in glory, brightness, power, will, and providence. John 3:16; Rom. 8:32; Mic. 5:2; Col. 1:15; 2 Cor. 4:4; Philip. 2:6; John 1:4; Col. 1:15; Rev. 1:8,17; John 17:21.