complaint before you, to ease my sorrowful heart, which is often so
disconsolate, yea, so disconsolate, that I might well say with David,
in my despondency: O Lord, I am cut off from before thine eyes (Ps.
31:22); yet I trust that he will before long hear the voice of my
supplication. Hence I pray you, my dear lamb, let not your ears become
weary of hearing my sorrowful complaint, nor let your eyes tire of
beholding my afflicted countenance. I hope that the Lord will so order
it, that it will not last much longer; hence bear patiently with me
for a little while yet, even as you have always done towards me. For
when it did not go well with us according to the flesh, you always
showed more patience than I, for which I heartily thank you. For your
hands were more diligent than mine to maintain the household; and you
walked more piously by your faith before God, than I; and your patience
is greater even until this present day, than mine. Hence I have good
reason to love you more than Paul loved the church at Ephesus, which he
yet for three years warned night and day, with anxiety, with watching,
and with tears. Acts 20:19,31. O my lamb, my love, my dearest love, I
have now, God be praised, also had you for about three years, and have
in these our bonds of tribulation had great anxiety day and night for
you, and have sighed so many a sigh, and wept so many a tear, which
I would not have wept, had I been able to speak to you. But now, my
affectionately beloved wife, since God has so ordered it, that I must
leave you, and, as it seems, go before, I say thus: Though I am not
worthy to exhort you, I yet exhort you in this letter with tears, and
beseech you, always to have the Lord before your eyes, and to cleave
to him with prayer and fasting. For I know that if God takes me out
of the flesh before you, that you will after my departure be severely
assailed; and therefore I beseech you, O my only lamb, for the Lord’s
sake, that you will watch circumspectly, as did the good and wise
virgins, who expected their bridegroom every hour. And I pray you, O my
love, my dearest love, if I have found grace before your eyes, remember
me, even as the pious, godfearing Judith remembered her husband. Jud.
16:22. O Beliken, Beliken, my dearly beloved, the three years which we
have lived together do not seem to me to be three days; hence when I
think of the parting, my heart is troubled. Yet I would, if it must
be, that the Lord would come speedily. For I have, the Lord knows, so
many sore vexations, so that I may well utter my complaint with David,
and say: “O Lord, my chastisement is ready every morning” (Ps. 73:14);
for he that seeks my soul, as a bird without cause, neither sleeps nor
slumbers day nor night, evening nor morning; but I expect with Paul,
that God, before long, will deliver me and us all out of the mouth of
the lion. 2 Tim. 4:17. Further, my affectionately beloved wife, Beliken
van der Straten, whom I love from the heart, let me, please tell your
love, that I do not know much more to write at this time, but I commend
you to almighty God, and to his comforting word. Moreover, I take
leave from you, even as bound Israel, who gave their children the last
milk; however, God who made the heavenly hosts, is well able to turn
the elephants back again. 3 Macc. 180. His will be done, and not ours.
Nothing more. The Lord be with you. Greet them that are with you, from
me. Adrian also greets you much.
Written by me, your dear husband and brother in the Lord.
MAERTEN VAN DER STRATEN.
THE SECOND LETTER FROM MAERTEN VAN DER STRATEN TO HIS WIFE.
I Maerten van der Straten, your dearly beloved husband and brother
in the Lord, wish you my affectionately beloved wife and sister in
the Lord, Beliken van der Straten, much grace and mercy from God our
heavenly Father; and may the love of his Son always be multiplied to
you, and the power of the Holy Ghost dwell in you richly, that you may
thereby lead a chaste conversation among the heathen, and be a light
for them that sit in darkness, so that you, according to Isaiah’s
writing, may see the King in his beauty (Is. 33:17) and be numbered
among the royal host that have washed their robes in the blood of the
Lamb, our Lord Jesus Christ, who bore our reproach, healed our wounds,
and restored for us that which he had not taken away, that he might
deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God
his father; to whom be honor, power, glory, and praise, for ever and
ever. Amen. Ps. 69:4; Gal. 1:4.
Cordially written to you, my chosen, dearest love Beliken van der
Straten, whom I love from the heart, yea, more than my own life, for
you are flesh of my flesh. In short, you are mine and I am yours.
Hence I thank the Lord without ceasing, that he has given me you; for
I would not have thought that God would have given me such a faithful
help-mate, with whom I have found so much love and patience; but God
has in every way shown me more mercy than I am worthy, and I hope he
will do so yet, when I shall need it most, for he is a gracious God,
who, according to Paul’s writing, is rich in goodness, and abounds in
mercy. Eph. 2:4.
Further, my dearly beloved, after this my brotherly salutation, let me,
please, inform your love, that my mind, God be praised, is fixed by his
help, to live and die in the truth. However, my love, I trust that
through the grace of the Lord you are also thus minded, by his help to
fear his name all the days of your life. The Lord of lords, and God of
gods, grant you and us all his grace to this end.
Furthermore, Beliken, my love, I understand it to be your request,
that I shall write to you once more, which it is impossible for me to
refuse you; yet I am unworthy to write to you, because of the thorn
which I have in my flesh, for my weakness is so great, that I might
well say: Oh that my head were waters, that I might day and night
bewail my miserable weakness; for my weakness is exceeding great, and
my sorrow moreover is not small, for when I think, O Beliken, my only
lamb, that I must part from you, and leave you among this adulterous
generation, O, then my heart is burdened unto death, and when I think;
if God should take you out of the flesh before me, O then my heart is
troubled still more, for I feel that after your departure, I should
not see a single happy day. Thus my thoughts distress me from every
side, so that I may well say with Susanna: O in what a great strait am
I now! Sus. 22. Yea, this miserable state has so laid hold on me, that
I may well cry to God, and say with Hezekiah: O Lord, ease me: for I
suffer distress (Is. 38:14), yea such distress as is suffered by the
hinds, when they writhe to bring forth. Moreover, I am ofttimes more
despondent than Jonah, when he was smitten down by the sun, Jon. 4:8.
Hence I may also well say: “O tribulation and vexation, how long will
ye live in me?” Yea, moreover, I may well say with David: “My enemies
ploughed upon my back, and made long their furrows.” Ps. 129:3. But
then I console myself again, O my love, when I remember, that God, as
Paul says, chasteneth whom he loveth, and scourgeth every son whom he
receiveth; and with the temptation also makes a way to escape, that one
may be able to bear it, which I have often experienced. Heb. 12:6; 1
Cor. 10:13. Hence I also thank the Lord, who has everywhere delivered
me from the snare of the fowler. Ps. 91:3. Therefore I will also with
David praise the Lord and glorify him among many, for he stands at the
right hand of his poor, to save him from those that condemn his soul.
Ps. 92:1; 109:31. Hence, O my chosen, dearest love, let us firmly
cleave to the Lord, and not stumble, though the wicked persecutes him
that is more righteous than himself. For Job says: The ungodly pluck
the child from the breast and make it an orphan in the city; they cause
men to sigh, and the souls of the slain to cry out; and God troubleth
them not. Job 24:9,12. But it is nevertheless certain, that God will
not always say amen to their course. For he says by the prophet: “I
hold my peace for a time, and am still, but at the last I will avenge
myself on mine enemies. Isaiah 42:15. For I lift up my hand to heaven,
and say, I live for ever. If I whet my glittering sword, and mine
hand take hold on judgment; I will render vengeance to mine enemies,
and will reward them that hate me. I will make mine arrows drunk with
blood, and my sword shall devour flesh over the blood of the slain, and
over the captives, and over the uncovered head of the enemy.” Hence,
Moses says: “Rejoice, all ye that are his people; for he will avenge
the blood of his servants, and render vengeance to his adversaries; but
he will be merciful unto the land of his people.” Deuteronomy 32:40–43.
Thus, O my love, my only lamb, let us be of good courage; though we
must now sow in tears, we shall in due time, I hope, reap an abundant
harvest. For God says through the prophet: “Rejoice ye with Jerusalem,
and be glad with her, all ye that love her; rejoice for joy with her,
all ye that mourn for her; that ye may suck, and be satisfied with the
breasts of her consolations; that ye may milk out, and be delighted
with the abundance of her glory.” Is. 66:10,11.
Thus, O my chosen, dearest love, let us for a little while help the
Lord bear his reproach; for it is a faithful saying, says Paul: “If we
suffer with Christ, we shall also reign with him, and if we die with
him we shall also live with him; and then all tears shall be wiped away
from our eyes, and all our tribulation, shall be changed into eternal
joy. Hence, O my love, let us diligently pray the Lord, that this
promise may be fulfilled in us, and that we may be found citizens in
the beautiful city where the walls are of sapphire and the streets pure
gold. Rev. 21:18.
Further my love, I will commend you to our dear Lord; may he keep and
govern you as his daughter, for I take leave now and bid you adieu.
O adieu, my affectionately beloved, for we must part in tears. O
adieu, Beliken van der Straten, my very dear wife, whose hand I took
with tears of joy. O bitter parting, how hard it is for me! Once more
I say adieu. O Beliken, my chosen, dearest love, I thank you most
affectionately for all your pure love. May the Lord recompense you.
Greet from me those that are with you. Adrian also greets you much. The
Lord be with you.
Written in my bonds, by me, your weak brother and servant, as much as I
am able.
MAERTEN VAN DER STRATEN.
THIRD LETTER FROM MAERTEN VAN DER STRATEN, TO HIS WIFE.
I Maerten van der Straten your affectionately beloved husband and
brother in the Lord, yet both unworthily, wish you my very dear,
beloved wife and sister in the Lord, Beliken van der Straten, much
grace and mercy from God our heavenly Father, and may the love of
his Son be multiplied to you, and may God, moreover, fill you, like
Jeremiah, with his Holy Spirit, that you may thereby withstand all the
subtle assaults of the devil, and after the victory, with all God’s
children, receive the crown of glory upon the pleasant mountain where,
according to the writing of Esdras roses and lilies grow. 2 Esd. 2:19.
And, my dearly beloved, I pray the Lord, to make you meet and worthy to
play the new song before the throne of his glory, for ever and ever.
Amen.
Cordially written out of tender love, to you Beliken van der Straten. O
my love, my chosen, dearest love, which through God’s providence was
given to me before his church by my father, and whose hand I took with
tears of joy, for which I also thank the Lord, that he gave me you,
for I would not have thought myself worthy of you. Hence this is also
a reason for me, to love you the more. Yet, I call God to witness,
that I love you as my soul, yea, more than the heart in my body, which
I am bound also to do according to the demand of the Scriptures, for,
since I, according to John’s writing, am bound to love my brother, how
much more then must I love you since you, according to the word of God
and Paul’s declaration, are flesh of my flesh, and bone of my bones.
And the apostle also says: “No man ever yet hated his own flesh; but
nourisheth and cherisheth it.” Eph. 5:29. In short, he that loves his
wife also loves himself.
Further, Beliken, my beloved, after this my proper and Christian
salutation, let me, please, inform your love that I, the Lord be
praised, am in tolerably good health according to the flesh, and
according to the spirit God be praised, my mind is still fixed to
fear the Lord, all the days of my life, according to my weak ability.
Furthermore, my dearest, I have the same confidence concerning you,
that you are well both in soul and body, prepared to live and die
to the glory of the Lord. This worshipful, good God, who has broken
the bow of the mighty, and, according to the word of the prophet,
through the gracious goodness gives both wine and milk without price
(Is. 55:1), may strengthen and confirm you and us all in this lion’s
den, where we, on every hand, are so severely assailed and so greatly
distressed, like Israel, when they were compassed about by Holofernes.
Jud. 7. Yea, the false elders do so distress us, that we can with
Susanna find nowhere a place of escape, but behold death before our
eyes on every hand; for our persecutors are evening wolves, that
leave nothing over till the morning. Hab. 1:8. Hence we may well say
with David: “They break in pieces thy people, O Lord, and afflict
thine heritage. They slay the widow and the stranger, and murder the
fatherless. They gather themselves together against the soul of the
righteous, and condemn the innocent blood. Psalm 94:5,6,21.
But, my dearly beloved, let us not therefore despond, though we are
now tried in the furnace of affliction, for the prophet says: “Blessed
is the man whom thou chastenest, O Lord, and teachest him out of thy
law, that he may have patience in the day of adversity, until the pit
be digged for the wicked. For the Lord will not cast off his people,
neither will forsake his inheritance. For he regardeth the prayer of
the destitute, and doth not despise their petitions; for he looketh
down from the height of his sanctuary, and from heaven doth the Lord
behold the earth, to hear the groaning of the prisoner. Ps. 94:12–14;
102:17,19,20. For Sara said: This I truly know, if a man serve God,
he is comforted after temptation, and delivered from affliction, and
after chastisement he findeth grace. For thou, O Lord, delightest not
in our destruction; for after the storm thou causest the sun to shine
again, and after weeping and mourning thou dost give us joy abundantly.
Eternal praise to thy name O God of Israel, for with thee is the
fountain of life, and in thy light we see light. Tobit 3:11; Ps. 36:9.
Hence, my love, O my dearest love, let us patiently drink the cup of
the Lord, for we know, according to the words of Isaiah, that truth is
fallen in the street, and that he that turneth from his evil ways is
the spoil of every one. Is. 59:14,15. For Esdras says: For there shall
be in every place, and in the next cities, a great insurrection upon
those that fear the Lord. They (the ungodly), shall be like mad men,
sparing none, but still spoiling and destroying those that fear the
Lord. For they shall waste and take away their goods, and cast them
out of their houses. Then shall they be known (says the Lord); who are
my chosen; and they shall be tried as the gold in the fire: 2 Esd.
16:70–73.
Therefore, O my chosen love, my lamb, let us give our back to the
smiters for a little while yet, and look to the author of our faith,
the King of kings and Lord of lords, who for our sakes was so
maltreated and disfigured, that he himself says: “If they have done
these things in a green tree, what shall be done in the dry.” Luke
23:31. Hence, O my love, my dearest love, let us think as Paul, that
our light affliction, which is but for a moment, will hereafter work
for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. 2 Cor. 4:17.
For Solomon says: But the righteous live for evermore; their reward
also is with the Lord, and the care of them is with the Most High.
Therefore shall they receive a glorious kingdom, and a beautiful crown
from the Lord’s hand: for with his right hand shall he sever them, and
with his arm shall he protect them. Wis. 5:15,16. Therefore, O my dear
lamb, let us diligently pray the Lord, that we may be worthy at his
coming, to live with him for ever and ever.
Further, my chosen, dearly beloved, know that I do not know much more
to write you, but I commend you into the hands of the Lord, and bid
you adieu if I should write you no more; for our enemies are now so
greatly incensed at us, that they gnash on us with their teeth, even as
they did on Stephen in the judgment hall. I therefore yet give you this
letter, even as Israel, when they were bound, gave their children the
last milk. And furthermore, I thank you, O my love, for all your pure
love and sincere friendship, and I also thank you much for the sleeves
you made me; they stand me in better stead than the coat which was sent
me. Rightly did Sirach say, that one friend helps the other in time of
need, but much more yet husband and wife.
Once more I take leave, and bid you adieu; O adieu, Beliken, my
dearest. Greet from me them that are with you. Adrian also greets you
much.
Written by me, your dear husband and brother in the Lord.
MAERTEN VAN DER STRATEN.
Pray for me.
THE FOURTH LETTER FROM MAERTEN VAN DER STRATEN, TO ANNA SERVAES.
I, Maerten van der Straten, your unworthy friend and brother, wish
you, my beloved, dear sister in the Lord, Anna Servaes, much grace
and mercy from God our heavenly Father; and may the love of his Son be
in you as a burning fire, that you may become perfect unto the measure
of the stature of the fullness of Christ, having your conversation
honest among the Gentiles, and bearing good fruits, as a tree planted
by the rivers of water, so that you may be numbered among the royal
priesthood, the peculiar people, which God, according to the writings
of Moses, bore on eagle’s wings; so that you, when the land shall again
be divided to Israel, may possess an inheritance full of joy, for ever
and ever. Amen. Eph. 4:13; 1 Pet. 2:12; Ps. 1:3; 1 Peter 2:9; Deut.
32:11.
A cordial, fond and affectionate greeting to you, my dear and much
beloved sister in the Lord, Anna Servaes, whom I love with a pure love
out of a pure heart, of which God be my judge, who, according to the
word of Jeremiah, tries men’s hearts and reins. Further, after all
proper and Christian salutation, let me, please, inform your love,
that I and my dear wife are in tolerably good health according to the
flesh, and according to the spirit we hope by God’s assistance to keep
the covenant which we once made with the Lord our God, when we bowed
our knees before him and his glorious majesty. Yet, we moreover trust
that also you are well in soul and body, ready to perform your journey
to Bethel, and to prophesy against Jeroboam and his altar. 1 Kings
13:1. To this end, may you and we all be strengthened by the only and
eternal, almighty God, whose tabernacle is on high, and who lives far
above all heavens, in a light which, according to the words of Paul (1
Tim. 6:16), no man can approach unto; that we may fear and love him
above all. For he is a jealous God, who would dwell alone in man’s
heart; for thereunto we have been delivered out of the hand of our
enemies, and from them that hate us, that we should fear and serve him
without fear, in true righteousness and holiness, all the days of our
lives, as good and faithful servants, seeking the praise of God, and,
with Paul, counting our gain loss for Christ’s sake, leading a chaste,
honorable life, and setting up an ensign for the nations, that we may
not make the blind to wander out of the way, but that we, according
to the words of Peter, through a modest and good conversation, may
win the unbelieving without the word; which Christ also teaches us in
the Gospel, saying: Let your light shine before men, that they may
behold your good conversation, and glorify God our Father in the day of
visitation. Ex. 20:5; 2 Cor. 6:16; Luke 1:74,75; Phil. 3:7; Isa. 11:12;
Deut. 27:18; 1 Pet. 3:1,2; Matt. 5:16; 1 Pet. 2:12. Hence, O my dear
and much beloved sister in the Lord, let us with all humility follow
the Lord’s footsteps, that in every respect we may adorn the doctrine
of the Gospel, shining as a bright morning star among this evil and
perverse generation; then shall the King, as David writes, greatly
desire our beauty. Ps. 45:11.
Hence, O love, let us each seek to be the chiefest in virtue, and
patiently wait for the Lord, our Comfort, who alone can help us, as
David says: “I waited patiently for the Lord; and he inclined unto me,
and heard my cry. He brought me up also out of a horrible pit, out of
the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings.
And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God.” Ps.
40:1–3. Therefore, O dear lamb, let us thank the Lord, and pray that
we may not be caught through our tongue, saying with Jesus Sirach:
“O Lord God, Father and Lord of my life, let me not fall among the
slanderers, and perish among them. O that I could bridle my thoughts,
and discipline my heart with the word of God, and that I might not
spare myself, if I erred, lest I should cause sin, and create great
error, and commit much evil, and perish before my enemies, and become
their sport.” Sir. 23:1–3. Hence, O dear sister, let us seek God’s face
day and night with tears, that we may not perish with the wicked under
the wrath of God, but that we may continue obedient in Christ unto
the end of our lives, so that we may be saved in the day of the Lord,
which, according to the words of Christ, shall come as a thief in the
night; in the which according to Peter’s writing, the heavens shall be
dissolved with fire, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat. And
if all these things are to come to pass, O how ought we to be meet and
adorned with a good, chaste and holy conversation! For the time is come
that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it now begin at
us, and if the righteous shall scarcely be written in the book of life,
what shall the end of the ungodly be? Matt. 24:42,43; 2 Pet. 3:10–12; 1
Pet. 4:17,18. O well may I sigh and say with Solomon: O Lord, wink at
the multitude of my sins. Wis. 11:23. Hence we may also with David say:
“O Lord, enter not into judgment with us, or, thou, O Lord, shalt be
justified. And render us not according to our deeds, neither reward us
according to our works, nor chasten us, O Lord, in thine anger, but be
merciful unto us, O Lord, according to thy goodness, which is great.”
Psalm 143:2; 6:1,2. Therefore, O dear lamb, let us cleave to the Lord
with prayer and supplication, with a broken heart and contrite spirit,
that we may be saved, not through our merits, but through the grace of
God, and thus live with the Lord in his eternal kingdom.
Further, my dear sister, I do not, because of my small gift, know
much more to write you, but commend you to the Lord, and to the rich,
comforting word of his grace. I moreover pray you to excuse the plain,
simple letter which I, your unworthy servant, have written, who am the
weakest in Israel, yea, not worthy to unloose your shoe’s latchet;
however, I yet trust in the grace of God.
Furthermore, my dear sister, greet your dear husband, and also the
acquaintances, in my name. My dear wife also greets you both, and the
acquaintances much. There also greet you much, Adriaen, Grietgen,
Hansken, and Dingentgen; and all of us prisoners jointly request of
you, that you will diligently pray the Lord for us. Nothing more.
Farewell, and do the best in the beginning and in the end.
Written in my bonds, by me, your weak brother and servant, as much as I
am able.
MAERTEN VAN DER STRATEN.
THE FIFTH LETTER OF MAERTEN VAN DER STRATEN, TO SERVAES JANSS.
I, Maerten van der Straten, imprisoned for the word of the Lord, wish
you my dear and much beloved brother in the Lord, Servaes Janss, much
grace and mercy from God our heavenly Father, and also to all that have
been redeemed from the earth, and cleansed by the blood of the Lamb,
our Lord Jesus Christ, who, according to the word of the prophet, bore
our reproach, took upon him our sins, and restored to us that which he
had not taken away, that he might deliver us from this present evil
world; according to the will of God his Father; to whom be glory power
and honor forever and ever. Amen.
Out of a fond heart a loving greeting to you, my beloved, dear friend
and brother in the Lord, whom I love according to the peculiar
privilege of Israel, this the Lord knows, who according to the words of
Jeremiah, tries men’s hearts and reins, and according to David, knows
men’s thoughts when they are yet afar off. Jer. 17:10; Ps. 139:2.
Further, after all proper and Christian salutation, let me, please,
inform your love, that I, the Lord be praised forever, am in tolerably
good health according to the flesh, and according to the spirit my mind
is still fixed to serve God all the days of my life. I have moreover
the undoubted confidence concerning you, that you are also well in soul
and body, ready to keep the covenant which you once made with the Lord
our God, when you bowed your knees before God and his glorious majesty;
may this only, eternal, and only wise God, endow you, according to the
word of the prophet (Joel 2:28), with his Holy Spirit, that you, led
by him, may lead a good and chaste conversation among the Gentiles,
as Christ teaches us in the gospel, saying: “Let your light so shine
before men, that they beholding your good conversation, may glorify God
your Father.”