Page:Luther's correspondence and other contemporary letters 1521-1530.djvu/116

 the Holy Spirit was never present in any other gathering of monks than this one. I hope the Lord has begun to laugh at Satan and his servants and to deride them. Certainly Satan himself has been conquered, the Pope and his abomi- nations have been conquered, and now I see that this last and least of^ his instruments must be conquered, namely, the wrath ov those bladders which puff themselves up so mag- nificently at Nuremberg.^ We believe that Christ, the Son of God, is Lord of life and death; whom, then, shall we fear? We have the first-fruits of victory, and we triumph over the papal tyranny, which used to put down kings and princes ; how much more easily shall we conquer and despise the princes. He does not lie Who hath said," "I will put all things under his feet." In that He saith "all things," does He not in- clude the wrath of that bladder of Dresden* and of all those who were lately in Nuremberg? Let them try to cast Christ down from heaven ; we shall look on, confident that the Father can preserve the Son at His right hand from the face and the tail of those smoking firebrands.^

I greatly fear that if the princes continue to listen to that dull-witted Duke George there will be an uprising which will destroy the princes and rulers of all Germany and will in- volve all of the clergy ; that is the way I see it. The people are everywhere aroused, and they have eyes; they will not and cannot be put down by force. It is the Lord who does this and hides these threatening perils from the eyes of the princes. Nay, by their blindness and violence He will bring such things to pass that I think I can see Germany swimming in blood. Therefore I beg you, by the mercies of Christ, my dear Wenzel, that you and yours will pray with us, and let us set ourselves as a wall before God for the people in that day of His great fury. Serious danger is impending, and that dullard of Dresden cares nothing for the people's cause, only so long as he can accomplish his insane purposes and satisfy his deep-rooted hatreds.

If you can do so, see that your councilors prevail upon the


 * !.€,, the princes gathered in the Imperial CounciL Cf. supra, pp. io6f.

'PmJui riii, 6.


 * Duke George of Saxony.

« Cf. Isaiah rii, 4.

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