Page:On The Spiritual Battle.pdf/13

 path is not dark in the eyes of people but is bright. The apostle says that the devil is transformed into an angel of light. God rightly says, “Who can discover the face of his garment? Or who can come to him with his double bridle?” God knows his cunning deception–how he covers up with great goodness, salvation, virtues, good intentions, scripture, truth, necessity, and usefulness–concealing his face with those things and deceiving with them.

We can recognize his virtuous clothing in the one who is called the man of sin, the son of perdition, and how the devil clothed himself in him and also dressed him in his vestments. Looking at him, we did not suppose that the ultimate Antichrist would be on the Roman throne! But when he is discovered and someone takes the honorable hat off of him, then we recognize that he is not an earthly god but the hidden Antichrist. It is strange and awful how long he has existed, how grandly he has been raised up, how virtuously clothed with seeming holiness and spiritual power he has been, and with such an office and power that he could give forgiveness of all sins, free a person from hellish torment, give the power to be a priest to whoever will give enough money, and divest someone of the priesthood with whom he is dissatisfied. He has also multiplied the lofty praises of God, consecrated many priests, confirmed many teachers of the law, thought up many traditions and sacrosanct things, and sanctified them with his power so that Christians accept them by faith. Who would not like his office and power, when he can easily receive salvation because of it? But speaking according to truth, we spot that most awful deception. It is the most cunning devil dressed up so that, not being known, he has deceived many nations with such a hidden lie so that, in ignorance, they repeat that lie to many people, grandly glorifying God with their falsehood. That strange clothing is here–bright like the sun before the face of man and delightful to the eyes, but actually an undreamed of darkness in which people fumble.

“Who can discover the face of his garment? Or who can come to him with his double bridle?” How can we know the devil’s concealed thoughts and what he intends with people when disguised by such things? When it is not easy to discover the garment that is over his face and to know him beneath it–that he is the devil–then who recognizes his secret intentions, getting inside his mouth? Who discovers that garment when many holy masses, beautiful singing, grand churches, immaculate decorations, and many other honorable things are seen where service to God occurs? Therefore, seeing such things, who can judge it in any other way than being man’s salvation and the great praise of God? People with darkened understanding scarcely believe that it is sin to kill a person, scarcely agree that ugly murder is evil, and only look for salvation in sublime but superficial religion. They fail to consider such things to be evil or to recognize the devil in them.

The devil also clothed the teachers of the law with much falsehood, fashioned well-fitting clothing for himself out of them, freely approached defenseless people and worked his wickedness through them beneath that clothing, and seized these teachers of the law in his snare themselves. Their honorable name is his honorable robe. They follow Christ in poverty, are separate from the world, and are already at rest with God Himself in theology. They sing and say the holy offices, take care of desolate souls, and keep many psalters and vigils. They get up after midnight, ring the bells, and play the organs. Such honorable and spiritual things are the devil’s most fastidious clothing, with which his face is virtuously disguised. People do not consider in their hearts that hell is shut up in those monastery walls, but suppose that the