Thieleman J. van Braght · 123 of 210

Old Book of the Martyrs Mirror · Part 61

Herewith I commend you to the Lord, and to the Word of His grace. Pray the Lord diligently for us, for he that asketh receiveth. I dare not let my thoughts dwell much on the children and you; it is so exceedingly hard for me to part from you and them. Satisfy all the friends as best you can, for I am tolerably well content, only it grieves me much on their account; however, the Lord has ordered it so.

By me, your weak husband, Christian Langedul, in prison at Antwerp, the 12th. of August 1567.

I have not fully recovered yet from the torture, as may be imagined; but I trust it is all well; do not grieve too much about it. If J. T. could bring along my account book, I should be glad; I should show him everything, or write it down for him. Bring us something to seal letters with.

Another letter of Christian Langedul, in which he

shows the assurance of his mind, the nothingness

of his own self, his love to his son in law,

J. T., and lastly, the fear which they had

of being tortured again, and why

Grace, mercy, and joy in the Holy Ghost, from God our heavenly Father, through Christ Jesus, this I wish you, my chosen and greatly beloved wife in the Lord, and all them that love His appearing. II Tim. 4:8.

Dearly beloved wife in the Lord, I hope you partly know by this time how it is with me, by the two letters I wrote you yesterday, which I hope you have already received. In them I wrote to you partly concerning the state of my mind, which is still unchanged, praise the Lord forever for His grace, which He gives to me, poor, unprofitable and exceedingly great sinner; for I deem myself unworthy and unfit for this glory, to which the Lord now calls me. Of myself or by my own strength I cannot attain it; hence I hope by His grace to adhere unto the end to the truth and the faith once delivered to the saints; for I am assured in my heart, and have certainly known it all the time of my pilgrimage (which is now about twelve yearstrue, only a short time, and imperfectly spent), that there will never be found another. Hence I hope to adhere to it, only by the strength and grace of the Lord, and not through my own; and I hope by the grace of God to rejoice, by my death, all those whom I may at any time in my life have grieved. And I hope that all those whom I may have wronged in any way will forgive me, since I have always been very ready to forgive, whenever any one wronged me; I hope that all men and the Lord will also do so towards me. I am greatly concerned for J. T., for I know his kindness; hence I will let this suffice, and wish him, as I have often done, true faith. This the Lord must give him; but he must also pray for and heartily desire it. Oh, that I might die another death for him, and all the friends, that they might be saved; how gladly I should do it! O J. T., how much you have done for me, and, I hope, will yet do for my weak wife (your mother), and my children, on whom I dare not let my thoughts dwell much. .She (your mother) is a woman who fears God with all her heart. Associate with her, for she will seek nothing but your common salvation. I will let this suffice for the present, else I should not have time to send this letter. I wrote you yesterday that I hoped to write to you during the day, but I could not do it; Mattheus and I lay in bed until two o'clock, so greatly were we afraid, because the margrave came here to torture Cornelis again, and we feared that we should also be tortured a second time, of which we had a great dread, more than of death, for it is an excruciating pain. Cornelis was tortured and scourged to such a degree the second time, that three men had to carry him up, and they say that he could scarcely move a member, except his tongue. He sent word to us, that if they come again it is his opinion it will finish him. Thus the Margrave did not come yesterday, but we expect him today again; may the Lord help us, for it is a horrible pain. Yesterday I received a small basket with eatables and a nightcap from J. T. I have lent the nightcap to Mattheus, and should like to have another, when convenient, as also a comb, and a Testament, a hymn book, or something else to read, that we may delight ourselves a little with the Word of the Lord. There is a turnkey here, by the name of Pieter, who will see that we get it. Enclosed I send you a little memento, and W. D. B.'s account. Yesterday evening we were told that J. T. and P. V. D. tried hard to get to me; but it could not be, because the margrave had said that he should come again; however, he did not come, for he attended a great banquet at Mansfield.

While I am sitting here, and writing, we are informed that the margrave will hold a penal court today; I hope it is for us. Pray for us. I hope God will strengthen us by His power, which surpasses everything. Oh, that we might be delivered thus soon; but I am afraid it will not be.

Herewith I commend you to the Lord, and to the Word of His grace. Always adhere to the truth, which, and nothing else, I have confidence you will do. I heartily greet you and all the God fearing with the peace of the Lord; and Mattheus does the same. Greet all the friends, especially grandmother, most heartily, when convenient. Mattheus would say to you and all the God fearing, that if he has grieved you in that he did not guard his lips better, he is sincerely sorry for it. Written in bonds, at Antwerp, on the 13th of August, 1567, by me, your weak husband,

CHRISTIAN LANGEDUL.

Do the best, and be of good cheer, and pray for us.

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Another letter o f Christian Langedul, in which he

exhorts his brother R. L. to perseverance in the

pilgrimage begun; and, being assured in his

mind, requests, for completion, the prayers

o f the saints; commends his wife to him,

and relates how a little priest came to

speak with him

The eternal, Almighty God and Father of mercy, through His Son, our Lord and Saviour, the same almighty, eternal, worshipful, only wise God and merciful Father of all grace, strengthen and stablish you unto the end with His Holy Spirit, my dear brother and sister in the Lord, and also according to the flesh; that you may receive the crown of life with all the saints and elect children of God; herewith I will bid you final farewell and greeting in this present time, with all dear brethren and sisters in the Lord who live with you and know me. Amen.

My dearly beloved brother and sister, whom I love from the bottom of my heart, I feel prompted now at the close of my life to write you a little for a memorial. I trust you will accept in good part, so that it may be a perpetual memento and admonition from this your second brother now that has been imprisoned here in the city of Antwerp for the testimony of the Lord, for which I hope to lay down my life by the grace of God, and hope that you will not faint on account of this our tribulation which we now suffer for Christ's sake, hoping that it happens for the furtherance of the Gospel, and to the awakening of many who possibly have long walked drowsily and half asleep, (that they may become awakened and sober); and I hope by the grace of the Lord that it will not tend to your abatement, but much rather to your greater edification, and that it will serve you as a perpetual direction in your pilgrimage which you have yet to take through a dismal wilderness, in which you may yet meet with many trials. Phil. 1:12; Eph. 5:14; I Thess. 5:6; I Pet. 2:11. Hence take diligent heed, and lust not after evil things; neither be like those who murmured; but give diligent care that you constantly press on to the promised land, with valiant Joshua and Caleb, so that you may take it by force. I Cor. 16:6, 10. And be content with the Word of the Lord, and look to the promise, for He is so faithful, and you know that the Israelites remained without for no other reason, than because of their unbelief. Heb. 3:19. Hence, my dear friends, believe God's work, and adhere:o it unto death, and God will give you the victory. Though they seem like giants in our eyes, we shall devour them as bread, and this through our faith, by which. we overcome the devil, hell, death and the world. Num. 13:33; I John 5:4.

O dearest friends, you know that all the pious overcame by faith, as you yourself, my dear brother, know better than I can write it to you. Hebrews 11. Take good heed, my beloved, that you fall not in the wilderness, as so many do; for in that case it were better for us not to have known the truth, yea, never to have been born; for if we lose our birthright, wherewith will we obtain the blessing again? for it is written that Esau sought it with tears, but found it not. II Pet. 2:21; Heb. 12:17. Therefore faint not, but firmly persevere, it is the true grace of God wherein you stand, as I hope you yourselves know. I doubt not that there will never be found another way. I Pet. 5:12.

O brother, were another to be found, than this anxious, narrow and strait way, how gladly should the flesh put up with it; but it must pass the strait. gate, and O how narrow this is, so that flesh and blood will adhere to the posts. But, dear and faithful brother, what great salvation the merciful Father has provided for me, who am so utterly unworthy; what great thanks shall I give Him for it, who has so endowed me with His grace and provided such a salvation for me. Continue in it, my dear brother and sister, and pray the Lord for us, that He may preserve us in out sorest distress, and comfort us when we are most in affliction, and in extreme need of consolation and help, as. I hope He will do, for He is faithful that promised it. He also will do it, and will be with us even unto death, and not forsake us; for who was ever confounded that trusted in Him? I hope He will not suffer us to be confounded, and that He will finish the good work which He has begun in us, and this through His unfathomable mercy and grace. To this end, help us to fight, with your prayers to God in our behalf; this is my desire and the desire of us all; in this you can now aid us the most.

My dear brother, why do you grieve for me; rather take comfort in it, for the Lord has obviously ordered it so. He loves us, and means to bring us into rest. I feel that it is all of the Lord, for when I for a time hear of no deliverance, I receive great joy in my heart and refreshing from the Lord; but as soon as something comes again, and the flesh lusts greatly after it, joy departs, and we have great difficulty to get it back from the Lord. Therefore I hope that you will resign yourselves better herein, for the Lord intends to deliver us from this body of death, and to help us out of this anxiety. The Lord be praised forever for the love He shows me, and that He so helps me. I hope He will keep also you in His truth; hence be of good cheer, and comfort yourselves with His beautiful promise, with which also we comfort ourselves entirely.

Therefore, dear brother, I will herewith conclude my letter; and I kindly ask you to accept it in good part, for it has been written to you and your dear wife out of heartfelt brotherly love, for a perpetual farewell and memorial. I herewith also thank you for the' great trouble and labor you have put yourself to for my sake and for the great expense you have on my account. I can never repay it to you; but I hope that the Lord will recompense it to you and yours, now and hereafter; also as regards that other matter, which you well know. O brother, do not let it vex you that I was so situated; I should so gladly have done it for you and yours, as God knows, who is acquainted with every heart. If convenient for you, lend my wife a little assistance while you are here, in the things in which she may need your services, and comfort her in the exceedingly great sorrow in which she now is; this I kindly request of you.

Herewith I will commend you to the Lord, and to the Word of His grace; may He strengthen and stablish you in His truth unto the end of your lives, to His praise, and to your salvation, and the salvation of us all.

This afternoon a little, lean priest visited us. I believe he is a Jesuit, and that he sometimes preaches in Koppenken's church. There is very little in the man: The bailiff accompanied him. He (the priest) damned us exceedingly, which was about all he had to say. I was with them about two hours. It would take too long to write all. His arguments were very weak. It seems strange to me that the lords are not ashamed to come with such men, who will by no means defend themselves with the Holy Scriptures, but with the teachers of the Roman church, with Ambrose, Jerome, and Augustine; whom [they say] we are to believe. I then confessed that it could not be proved with the apostolical writings that the apostles baptized infants; also, that baptism belonged to believers, and that infants had no faith. But he constantly asserted that the ancient teachers had written it, and that the holy Roman church so observed it, hence also we had to observe it. A poor argument. The others had something at least, but he was too wretchedly deficient. Hence it would be too tedious to write about it.

Herewith I commend you to God. Written at Antwerp, in prison, by me, your weak brother in the Lord, and also according to the flesh, Christian Langedul, imprisoned for the testimony of the Lord and my conscience, the 10th of September, 1567.

Christian Langedul's leave and last adieu to Maey;

ken Raedts, his wife after he was sen;

tenced to death

Grace and peace from our heavenly Father, through Christ Jesus, this I wish you, my dear and chosen wife and sister in the Lord; and may the Comforter, the Holy Ghost comfort you in your tribulation, as He will do according to His promise. And I trust, my wife, that all (whether tribulation or sorrow), will tend to salvation to the Christian, as I also trust it will conduce to your salvation, and also to mine, although no tribulation for the present seems to be joyous, and this according to the words of the apostle. Heb. 12:11. However, afterward, my beloved, it will work the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them that by good works seek eternal life, as we have done according to our weakness, for thus I may well say, and I speak it from the.heart. Nevertheless, I expect to inherit salvation through the grace of the Lord, and am of good cheer herein; I will therefore thank the Lord forever for His love. O my love, the winepress must now be trodden; and I am quite ready for it,. the Lord be praised. Truly, He is a God of all COmfort who comforts us in all our tribulation. Oh, that I could fully thank the Lord for all the comfort anal strength He grants to me, unworthy .one.

Therefore, my beloved, comfort yourself in the Lord, and in His word; therein you will find such great consolation and refreshment; and may the. Holy Ghost dwell in you with all wisdom as, I doubt not that the Spirit of God does dwell in you, and that He will guide you into all truth and righteousness.

Your letter I received this noon; I thank you very much for it: J. was here, but we could scarcely speak together. I felt somewhat sorry on account of it afterwards; when I parted from him; but the jailer drove us away, saying that. the lord was coming, which I half thought was not so; nor was it so, for the lord did not come. I would fain not have parted from him in this manner, but the Lord disposes. Tell J. T. and his wife; that I wish their salvation from all my heart, and that he and she, and all men, might know the truth. If f promised it to him in weakness, I hope, by the, grace of God, tomorrow to, demonstrate it in power. J. told me that you. were writing me another letter: O my love, you .put yourself to too much trouble, I fear;, do rest, for it will soon be over with me.

Herewith I commend you to the Lord, and to the word of His grace. Greet all the friends most cordially with the peace of the Lord; greet warmly R. Langedul; also your sister, and all the friends, whenever it is convenient, and bid them all adieu. Adieu, my dear lamb, adieu. Written on the 12th of September, 1567 by me, Christian Langedul, your husband and weak brother in the Lord, imprisoned and sentenced to death for the testimony of Christ, and for .our conscience. All four of us greet you very much in the Lord. We are of good cheer and courage in the Lord, as Kalleken, who visited us, will tell you: Thank R. most heartily in my name for his letter; it rejoiced my heart, the Lord be praised. Amen.

NOTE. .As there has been put into our hands a letter written by Hans Symons (who was burnt at Antwerp, A. D. 1567, together with Christian Langedul and two others of our fellow believers) to his wife, shortly before his death, we deem it well herewith to insert the same; the copy of the letter reads.as .follows

COPY OF A LETTER WRITTEN BY HANS ' SYMONS

TO HIS WIFE, IN HIS BONDS OR' IMPRISON;

MENT AT ANTWERP, IN SEPTEMBER,

IN THE YEAR, A. D. 1567 '

Grace, peace and mercy from God the heavenly Father; also steadfastness in the faith, and constant adherence to God in all temptations and tribulations, by the power and operation of the Holy Ghost; unto Him, blessed forever, be praise and thanks. This I wish you, my most beloved wife and sister in the Lord, whom I love after a godly manner, as my own flesh, yea, have loved more than my own self, as evidenced by many favors and acts; this is my heartfelt greeting to you, and that it may go well with you, both in soul and body. Amen.

Further, my dear and much beloved wife, and sister in the Lord, know that I have received your letter, which comforts me in my bonds, because I learn that you still remember me and my fellow prisoners in the Lord, in your prayers, that the Lord would strengthen and comfort us, and help us finish the good work by Him begun in us, to His praise and the salvation of our souls.

O dear lamb, I also beseech you on high from the bottom of my heart, to keep you from all error of unbelief, and to help finish, to His praise and honor, and to the salvation of your soul, the good work which He has begun in you.

Let us pray together with a broken heart, an humble spirit and a pure conscience, lifting up holy hands, without contention or strife, praying to God steadfastly in the faith, then will our prayer be a sweet savor and an acceptable offering to God; for every gift comes from the Father of lights.

O my dear wife, lay to heart the virtues which the Lord has caused to be proclaimed to you, as the prophet says: "He hath shewed thee O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God." Micah 6:8.

Always remember those who have walked the way before you through much tribulation, and have always remained valiant in the faith, with a firm confidence. "Who was ever confounded that trusted in the Lord?" says the prophet. Hence, dear wife, do not slightly esteem the great grace which the Lord has shown you. Always persevere steadfastly, and trust in the Lord with a firm confidence; He will not forsake you; nor will He leave you without comfort; for in time of need He succors His own, and says: "A mother may forget her child, yet will I never forget thee."

Be of good cheer, I pray you, in your trial, which the Lord sends you, and take job for an example, how patient he was; and the Lord blessed him.

I trust the Lord will let His merciful eyes rest upon you and upon all sorrowing and afflicted hearts, to comfort them by the Spirit by which He Himself was comforted in His sufferings.

I am much troubled and afflicted in my heart, when I think of you, and of my four poor little lambs, whom I must all leave.

I pray you, Tanneken, remember them in your heart as long as you live.

Do not forget my request of you, namely, that you walk in the law of your Lord all the days of your life, and that you be to my and your children, whom the Lord has given us during the time of our wedlock, a pattern in all humility and obedience, in instruction in righteousness,; and take for remembrance, the Maccabean mother, how she strengthened her children, that they should not forsake the law of God.

I commend them to you, my dearest wife, and to the Lord. He will help you; His hand is not shortened, that He cannot help us. For better is one child that fears God, than a thousand ungodly children; yea, it were better to die childless, than to leave ungodly children behind. I pray you, exercise good care over them; I commit them to you, and to the Lord, for I am taken from you and them, which greatly troubles me, according to the flesh; but I remember that it is written: "Whosoever forsaketh not everything, father, mother, sister, brother, wife, children, property, lands, yea, also his own life, the same is not worthy of me;" in short, "Whosoever loveth aught more than me, is not worthy of me." I do not know what the Lord has seen in me, when I consider that I am so miserable and unworthy to suffer for His name. I can praise and thank the Lord for the great benefits which He has shown me in my bonds. Well do I now find, that the Lord has helped us. unworthy ones, especially me.

According to the Spirit, my heart rejoices in the hope of future glory. I hope that I shall soon put off this mortal garment, and put on the immortal; may the Lord direct our hearts thereto, for we need help from the Lord of hosts, in our tribulation. See, my dear and much beloved wife and sister in the Lord, take this, with your little children, as a testament and, as a remembrance from him who has lived with you in the bonds of wedlock for about five years. We must now part, because of the covenant which we made with God., never to depart therefrom; hence I must now depart from the marriage covenant, for the sake of the covenant which we made with God; I now go (though unworthily), the way which the prophets, Christ, and His apostles went, through much tribulation and pain, with many tears, and must drink the cup of bitterness which they all drank. Though the Lord Himself said: "Holy Father, if it be possible that this cup pass from me, let it be done; but if not, Holy Father, thy will be done;" yet He was given us for an example, that we should follow His footsteps in obedience; for Christ entered into His glory through much suffering, thereby leaving us an example that we should follow His steps:

Therefore, my beloved in the Lord, comfort yourself with His Word, and remember that John writes, that the Lord said to Ibis disciples and to His friends: "In the world ye shall have tribulation; but be of good cheer, your .tribulation shall be turned into joy." Hence, dear Tanneken, rejoice in the hope of future happiness; be patient in tribulation, continue instant in prayer, that the Lord would comfort you and not suffer you to fall into temptation, but with it also make a way of escape. Commend your matters to the Lord; I hope and trust in God that, if you continue in His laws, and constantly keep the Lord before your eyes, He will raise up some one who will help, comfort and assist you. Never separate from the God fearing. How pleasant it is to be among. the Lord's people! I say with Moses: "I would rather suffer affliction with the people of God than enjoy temporal pleasure."

Always associate with the saints of the Lord; for among the holy, one becomes holy, says the apostle.:And remember the words of the Lord

"He that overcometh shall inherit all things, and be clothed in white raiment, and God shall wipe away all tears from our eyes."

O dear Tanneken, it seems that there must be tears; for where no tears are, none can be wiped away. The Lord grant (as I trust in Him that He will) that after this tribulation, which has come upon us for His name's sake, and which is a sore affliction to my heart, we may rejoice together in the kingdom of God and of Christ. For, my dear and much beloved wife and sister in the Lord, whom I love from the bottom of my heart, together with my four little, children, it, is very hard for me when I, think of your heavy burden, the spoiling of our property, and that the Lord has deprived you of the provider of your daily bread.. I, fain would, had it been the Lord's pleasure, that He had spared us. this affliction; however as it cannot be otherwise, we will commend our affliction to the Lord.

When I consider, Tanneken, our past time, I think that it is a fatherly chastisement, for He says

"Whom I love I chasten." I well know that we have merited it at the hands of the Lord, since we ofttimes were disobedient in the sufferings sent us by Him. When we (as is true enough) had little success, as the world counts success, we complained and murmured against God, because we had not more to live on, and many children were born to us; just as though God's hand had been shortened, that He could not have fed us. And now that little vanishes away as a prey, and we must be satisfied; however, it is for the Lord's sake; and for His sake I gladly suffer. The Lord gave it me, and for His sake I will also gladly resign it.

Hence, dear Tanneken, I have often before told you this. I do not write it to trouble you, but to indicate to you that God is chastening us; for He shows that He still loves us. Though the Lord chasten us, let us not cast His chastisement from us; for He that rejects chastisement and instruction will perish.

Therefore, my beloved, I earnestly pray the Lord for you, and for my four children whom God has given me which you bore me, and brought forth in pain that He would not forsake you, but comfort, strengthen and stablish you, and feed all my four little orphans, and their mother, both according to the soul and body. Always trust in the Lord; I trust He will not forsake you. Take counsel with the Lord, and with them that fear Him; and take better heed to walk in the obedience of Christ. I am sorry from the bottom of my heart, that I have not improved my time better. And I ask you to excuse and forgive me in whatever I have grieved you; for I am heartily sorry for it; and wherein you may have grieved me, I forgive you all from the bottom of my heart. And I pray the Lord, that He would also forgive us the same, as I hope, and also trust in Him, that He has done: I thank you for the good intercourse we had together during the time of our wedlock; and I thank also all the brethren and sisters in the Lord, for the intercourse I had with them in the faith, for their faces were always pleasing to me. The Lord grant us grace that hereafter we may all live together in joy with the Lord, and be crowned with the crown of salvation, with which all the saints of God will be adorned, and this out of pure grace. Amen.