and an other saide on that manner. Then there came foorth a spirit, and stoode before the Lorde and saide, I will entice him. And the Lorde saide vnto him, wherewith? And he saide, I will goe out and be a false spirite in the mouth of all his Prophets. Then he saide, thou shalt entice him, and shalt also preuaile: go foorth and do so. Now therefore beholde, the Lord hath put a lying spirite in the mouth of all these thy Prophets, and the Lorde hath appointed euill against thée. Then =Sedechias= came neare and smote =Micheas= on the chéeke, and saide: when went the spirit of the Lord from me, to speake vnto thée? And =Micheas= prophecied what should happen also vnto him. So the king commaunded him to be cast into prison, and to be fed with bread and water vntil he returned from the wars. Then saide =Micheas=, If thou returne in peace, the Lorde hath not spoken by me: and therewith he willed all the people to hearken what he spake. Notwithstanding the kings went foreward with their enterprise, and prepared themselues, and led foorth their armies against their enemies. =Achab= was slaine in the battaile: =Iosaphat= because he ioyned himselfe with the wicked, was in very great daunger, &c. I haue handled this historie somewhat at large, that we might vnderstand, how God by his iust iudgement sendeth spirites vnto those which despise his word, whereby they may be beguiled and deceiued. The very same happened vnto the Christians after the Apostles time. For when the word of God began to be lesse estéemed than it should haue bene, and men preferred their owne affections before the hearing thereof: and when as they would incurre no maner of daunger, for the defence of their faith, and of the truth, but accounted of all religions alike, God so punished them, that now they began to giue eare vnto false teachers, whiche framed themselues vnto their vaine affections, they learned of images, whom they called Lay-mens bookes, they kissed these mens bones, and shrined them in golde (if happily they were their boanes) whose doctrine before they disdained to receiue: they gaue credit vnto false apparitions and diuellish visions: and so suffered they worthie punishment for their great ingratitude. Euen as yoong men, which will not be ruled by their maisters, are after compelled to obey other men with great shame: so also happened it vnto those men: for they fel daily more and more from the word of God, in so much that when they had once lost the truthe, some ranne one way, and some an other, to finde a meanes for the remission of their sinnes: and one man beléeued this spirite, an other that, which no man can deny. [Sidenote: _Rom._ 1.] [Sidenote: Athanasius.]