Page:Luther's correspondence and other contemporary letters 1507-1521.djvu/345

 nothing else than our riot. In almost all prophecies and visions a big man signifies the gross commonalty. Yesterday* from the pulpit I preached against the tumult as though I were partial to neither side; I simply described the evil of sedition in the abstract whether it was supported by the citi- zens or by the students, and I commended the power of magis- trates as one instituted by God, so that seditions should not lay everything waste. Good Heavens ! How much hatred I won for myself!* They shouted that I was taking the part of the town council. At length they thus betrayed the thoughts of their hearts, so that we learned who had truly imbibed our theology and who had only pretended to do so. Such a sieve is needed to separate the wheat from the chaff. I see Satan in this affair, who, when he saw that he could do nothing at Rome and abroad against us, found this evil to hurt us badly from within.

This thing was small at first, but behold, the more it is treated, the more bitterly does it seize and corrupt hearts, a strictly diabolic quality, for Satan augments the disease by what you would think would cure it. I do not fear him, but I am afraid that we offend the Lord with our ingratitude and vainglory, who in his anger permits Satan thus to burst forth in the midst of the sons of God. Nor does this so much move me, as fear of what may happen in the future, forsooth that we should become hard and filled with Satan and thus incor- rigible. Thus we should fill up the measure of our wicked- ness, and the wrath of God should come and smite us with some great plague to our confusion, because we did not receive the Word of God when it was offered to us, or did not receive it worthily.

On this account I am much alarmed. Every one of the past three years I have suffered some signal danger, first at Augs- burg, then at Leipsic, now at Wittenberg. We need not wis- dom and weapons, but humble prayer and strong faith to win Christ for us ; otherwise it is up with us, if we confide in our own strength. Wherefore betake yourself with me to prayer,

iRather July 15.

'A student who had come from Leipsic was heard to say diat if the moo^ spoke like that they ougrht to hit him on the tooanre with a atone, and anotbtf that they ought to make an end of him.

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